Bernard Madoff has been less than fully cooperative with investigators, which may have contributed to his 150-year sentence. But the government found a canary in Madoff's long-time CFO, Frank DiPascali, who just pleaded guilty to 10 charges of fraud and faces more than a 125 years in jail, according to media reports. He's been a cooperating witness ever since late last year, speaking daily with investigators. Prosecutors and his attorney argued for lenience at the hearing.

But in shocking decision, judge Richard Sullivan ordered him jailed immediately, reports the AP. This is the second time a judge has taken issue with a deal cut by prosecutors and defendants. Judge Jed Rakoff has yet to approve Bank of America's settlement with the SEC. DiPascali was shocked, but his cooperation will still likely earn him a favorable sentence--relatively speaking. His sentence, by agreement, will not begin until 2010. The judge may simply be making a statement. 

For more:
- here's a Reuters article
- here's the AP article