U.S. District Court Judge Denny Chin sentenced Bernard Madoff to the maximum 150 years in prison today for running the biggest Ponzi scheme in history, calling the crime: “extraordinarily evil.”

“Symbolism is important,” Chin told Madoff at a New York sentencing hearing.

Earlier, Madoff spoke for the first time about the scam, telling Chin: “I will live with the pain and torment (of hurting people) for the rest of my life.”

“I cannot offer an excuse for my behavior,” Madoff said. “How to do excuse deceiving investors? How do you excuse lying to your sons? How do you excuse lying to your two brothers? How do you excuse lying to a wife who stood by me for 50 years.

“There is no excuse for that,” Madoff told the court. “I made a terrible mistake. . . . I’ve left a legacy of shame for my children and grandchildren. I will live with the pain and torment the rest of my life.”

Then, the scammer turned to victims in the courtroom and