NEW YORK - Bernard Madoff, the swindler who orchestrated a multibillion dollar fraud, was attacked by another inmate at the federal prison where he is serving a 150-year sentence, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing three people familiar with the matter.

The report said that the attack occurred last December. After it, Madoff was moved to a low-security medical center for treatment, where he was treated for a broken nose, fractured ribs and cuts to his head and face, according to a felon currently at the prison in Butner, N.C.

At the time of the incident last year, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons said the disgraced financier was being treated for high *lo** pressure and dizziness. The Federal Bureau of Prisons and IraSorkin, a lawyer for Madoff, did not immediately return calls seeking comment on the Wall Street Journal report.

Madoff is serving a 150-year sentence at Butner Federal Correctional Complex in North Carolina after pleading guilty to a $65 billion investment fraud that bilked thousands ofinvestors worldwide.

The Wall Street Journal said details of Madoff's injuries couldn't be independently verified. But it said another inmate who recently was released from Butner confirmed the assault. A third unnamed person did, too, according the report.

The former inmate, who served time on drug charges, said the dispute centered on money the assailant thought he was owed by Madoff.

The Wall Street Journal said the Bureau ofPrisons told it that the incident had been investigated, including an interview with Madoff.