What do you think about the Wells Fargo-Malibu home story?

Bernard L. Madoff’s massive fraud stunned some of the wealthy denizens of Malibu Colony, especially when a couple devastated by the scheme surrendered their oceanfront home to Wells Fargo Bank. But some neighbors say the real shocker came when they saw one of the bank’s top executives spending weekends in the $12-million beach house and hosting eye-catching parties there. What’s more, Wells Fargo spurned offers to show the property to prospective buyers, a real estate agent said. ‘It’s outrageous to take over a property like that, not make it available and then put someone from the bank in it,’ said Phillip Roman, an 18-year Colony resident who lives a few homes away from the property.

Wells Fargo & Co., seeking to distance itself from a company executive’s alleged personal use of a $12-million beachfront Malibu home owned by the bank, said Friday that it would ‘take decisive action’ against any employee ‘who may have violated Wells Fargo’s policies.’ The bank’s strongly worded statement came as it faced a potentially embarrassing public relations imbroglio in the aftermath of reports that one of its senior executives had lived in the home that was surrendered by victims of Bernard L. Madoff’s massive fraud. ‘I almost fell out of my chair’ when reading about the Wells Fargo allegations Friday morning, said Jerry Swerling, director of public relations studies at USC’s Annenberg School for Communication. ‘That these folks could think this would not somehow become public astonishes me.’