Con man's confiscated car on auction block today

If the seats of the 2001 Mercedes E320 station wagon could talk, what stories would it tell of chauffeuring around admitted Ponzi scheme mastermind Bernard Madoff?

Someone with the right bid might find out today, when the U.S. Marshals Service sells the car at an auction in East Brunswick.

The Mercedes, which belonged to Bernard and Ruth Madoff, is among 33 confiscated vehicles for sale to the highest bidder.

Money from the Mercedes sale will go toward restitution for the thousands of victims who were swindled out of billions of dollars they thought were safely invested in Madoff's decades-long scheme.

"This is just the beginning, and not the end, of the liquidation of Madoff properties," said James Plousis, U.S. Marshal for New Jersey. "We're here to show the public we are proceeding, and show the victims that there will be restitution."

Madoff, 71, was arrested Dec. 11 and was sentenced June 29 to 150 years in prison.

Yesterday, nearly 250 people came to a preview of the vehicles for sale at the auction center at 40 Cotters Lane, East Brunswick, and another 150 people are expected today, Plousis said.

Registration opens at 10 a.m. and the auction starts at 11 a.m.

The Mercedes-Benz, the only Madoff vehicle in today's sale, is valued at $14,000 by Kelley Blue Book. But the Marshals Service hopes the notoriety of the past owner will bring more.

"I couldn't even give a guesstimate of what it will go for," Plousis said.

Last month, Madoff's Montauk, Long Island, beach home was auctioned off for $9.4 million, according to the service.

Several boats and another Madoff car kept in Florida will be auctioned off next month, and more of the Madoffs' property from their Manhattan residence will be up for sale in the New York area.

The gleaming station wagon with a spotless dark gray interior comes with a sunroof and a car phone that can be used with a hand-held receiver....