Saturday, August 5, 2017

Martin Shkreli: World's ‘Most-Hated’ CEO jailbound

Long before jurors reached their verdict, Martin Shkreli was guilty on one count: gall in the first degree. During his securities-fraud trial, prosecutors nailed the former biotech CEO for one of his lies. Shkreli liked to brag he was a Columbia University alum. He wasn’t. Most would shrink into their seats. Not Shkreli. Later that day, he took to his Facebook Live Stream and hurled obscenities at all his critics. He was wearing a Columbia T-shirt.
Martin Shkreli is best known as the founder of Turing Pharmaceuticals AG, where he gleefully spiked the price of a life-saving drug 5000 times. He was also accused of repaying creditors by stealing $11 million from Retrophin Inc., another medical company he founded. Prosecutors described it as a Ponzi scheme or robbing one bank to repay another. Facing a prison term of up to 20 years, Shkreli stands out in the annals of American CEOs turned convicts.

Shkreli made one conventional legal decision: he didn’t take the stand because his many lies could’ve been used against him.