Martin Shkreli, the New York businessman charged by federal prosecutors on allegations that he plundered his own companies and defrauded investors, is worth at least $45 million, according to a New York Times report.
Newly released court filings disclosed Shkreli’s wealth. It shows that he used an E-Trade brokerage account containing $45 million, $5 million of which was used to secure his release after his arrest on Dec. 17.
The Times noted that this is the first public accounting of how much money Shkreli has made.
Shkreli, the Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO, gained Internet infamy a few months ago when he raised the price of a life-saving drug from $13.50 to $750 per pill.
Dubbed the “pharma-bro,” Shkreli bought the Wu-Tang Clan’s $2 million album, “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin,” which exists only as a single copy.
Wu-Tang producer and rapper RZA said he’s cashed Shkreli’s check.
“He bought it, he can do what he wants,” RZA told Bloomberg TV. “Art--the beautiful thing about art, from my standpoint, is that it has no discrimination.”
He added: “What we’ve done is historical, and you can’t remove that.”
RZA, whose real name is Robert Diggs, said he used a middleman to broker the sale between Wu and Shkreli.
“If you want me to make a beat, come to the RZA, I can handle that,” he added. “If you want me to auction off or sell a painting, that’s not my business, so I put it in the hands of professionals.”
