Two weeks after Bernard Madoff told his sons that his investment business was "all just one big lie," a sharper picture is emerging about the investigation into the alleged fraud, how it evolved to ensnare bigger clients and how long it went on.

The broad reach of the alleged scandal was on stark display with the apparent suicide of Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet, the co-founder of Access International Advisors, who was found dead Tuesday in his Manhattan office after apparently suffering losses of $1.5bn (€1bn) in the alleged fraud perpetrated by Madoff.