Menu

Topics

Connect

Comments

Comments closed.

Due to the sensitive and/or legal subject matter of some of the content on globalnews.ca, we reserve the ability to disable comments from time to time.

Please see our Commenting Policy for more.

‘Pharma bro’ Martin Shkreli probed by prison authorities for allegedly running his company behind bars

March 9, 2018: You could call it karma for Pharma Bro. America's most hated man, Martin Shkreli, has been sentenced to seven years for fraud. Mike Drolet reports on the punishment that wiped the smirk of Shkreli's face – Mar 9, 2018

The U.S. Bureau of Prisons said on Friday it was investigating former drug company executive Martin Shkreli‘s conduct in prison after the Wall Street Journal reported he was still helping run his old company using a contraband cellphone.

Story continues below advertisement

“When there are allegations of misconduct, they are thoroughly investigated and appropriate action is taken if such allegations are proven true,” the Bureau of Prisons said in a statement. “This allegation is currently under investigation.”

The investigation was first reported by the Journal.

WATCH: March 8, 2018 — Martin Shkreli may turn over Wu-Tang Clan album to pay off $7.36 million federal bill

The bureau said that possessing a contraband cellphone was considered a severe offense and could result in discipline, including being separated from the inmate population and having visits restricted. It also said that possessing a contraband phone could lead to criminal charges.

Story continues below advertisement

Benjamin Brafman, a lawyer for Shkreli, declined to comment.

The Journal reported on Thursday that Shkreli, 35, still wields significant influence over the drug company he founded, Phoenixus AG, formerly called Turing Pharmaceuticals. Shkreli is about 17 months into a seven-year prison sentence for defrauding investors in a previous company.

READ MORE: ‘Pharma Bro’ moved to low-security New Jersey prison with pool tables, music room

The FBI has interviewed Shkreli’s associates about his role in the company, the Journal said, citing unnamed people who had been interviewed. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Shkreli, born in Brooklyn to Albanian immigrant parents, became known as the “Pharma Bro” in September 2015 after founding Turing Pharmaceuticals, buying the anti-parasitic drug Daraprim and raising its price by 5,000 percent to $750 per pill. In December 2015, he was indicted on unrelated securities fraud charges.

Prosecutors said he defrauded investors in two hedge funds he ran, MSMB Capital and MSMB Healthcare, schemed to prop up the stock price of Retrophin, the drug company he founded in 2011.

Story continues below advertisement

WATCH: Dec. 1, 2016 — Students in Sydney recreate drug Martin Shkreli hiked for fraction of price

A jury in federal court in Brooklyn found him guilty in August 2017.

He is at Federal Correctional Institution, Fort Dix, a low-security prison in New Jersey.

Advertisement

You are viewing an Accelerated Mobile Webpage.

View Original Article