Madoff liquidation trustee seeks $28 mn for costs

NEW YORK: A trustee presiding over the liquidation of Bernard Madoff's investment firm says he plans to spend $28.1 million on employee salaries and other costs.

Court papers filed in federal bankruptcy court in Manhattan on Friday show that Bank of New York Mellon Corp. has agreed to transfer the money to Trustee Irving Picard.

The court papers say the trustee is in ``urgent need of funding for immediate costs of administration of the debtor's estate.''

They added that $883,000 had already been transferred to the trustee to pay employees their salaries and health care benefits.

Anyone objecting to the transfer of the $28 million was invited to attend a bankruptcy hearing on the matter at 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT) Tuesday. A bankruptcy judge must still approve the deal.