Hedge fund fraudster admits jumping bail

A convicted hedge fund fraudster who faked his own suicide to avoid going to prison has pleaded guilty to jumping bail.

Samuel Israel, founder of the Bayou hedge fund group, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last April after he admitted running an investment fraud that cost his clients around $450 million, Reuters reports.

However, a court heard that on the day he was supposed to report to a Massachusetts prison to start serving the term, he disappeared after leaving his car abandoned by a bridge with the words "suicide is painless" etched into the dust on the windshield.

Investigators soon ruled out suicide and launched a manhunt for the former investment manager. Mr Israel turned himself in last July.

The latest hearing had been delayed several times while Mr Israel received medical treatment. He could face an additional ten years in prison for jumping bail.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 24th.