A US judge Monday rejected prosecution demands for alleged Wall Street swindler Bernard Madoff to be jailed, but tightened his pre-trial bail conditions.
New conditions included compiling a detailed inventory of Madoff's valuable portable items and a ban on transfer of all his assets, the judge said in his ruling posted on the New York federal courthouse's website.
Madoff, 70, was arrested December 11 after allegedly confessing to running a 50-billion-dollar pyramid scheme. His assets were frozen and he was confined to house arrest in his luxury New York apartment.
This week, prosecutors demanded that he should be jailed, saying he violated the bail terms by sending out more than a million dollars worth of jewelry to friends and relatives.
However, Madoff's attorney argued his client should remain free on bail because he was highly unlikely to flee ahead of trial and posed no danger to the community.
