René-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, born on April 23, 1943, was a French aristocrat, financier, and businessman known for his role in the hedge fund industry. He served as a money manager and was deeply involved in international finance, particularly through his firm Access International Advisors, which he co-founded. His career focused on managing investments for high-net-worth clients and institutions, operating primarily out of New York. As a scion of French nobility, de la Villehuchet's story highlighted the intersection of old-world aristocracy and modern high finance. He became tragically linked to the Bernard Madoff investment scandal in December 2008, when it was revealed that his firm had lost approximately $1.4 billion in Madoff's Ponzi scheme. The collapse wiped out the majority of Access International's assets, leading to immense financial devastation for de la Villehuchet and his partners. Overwhelmed by the losses and the fallout, he died by suicide on December 22, 2008, in his Manhattan office by slashing his wrists with a box cutter. His death underscored the global ripple effects of the Madoff fraud, which ensnared numerous reputable investors and firms.