
Pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli, who made headlines previously by dramatically raising the price of a life-saving drug, has been arrested on charges of securities fraud, according to
Bloomberg.
The 32-year-old businessman initially gained
notoriety by purchasing the patent for a drug, Daraprim, used to treat a parasitic infection that is deadly to patients with weakened immune systems, and then raising its price from $13.50 a pill to $750. While public
outrage initially led him to consider lowering the cost, he then reversed that decision and said,
instead, that he should have made it even more expensive. He also
bought the only copy of a new album by the Wu Tang Clan for $2 million, but said he probably won't listen to it. Consequently,
multiple news
outlets have
dubbed him the most hated man in America.
He was arrested by federal agents this morning, who believe that he took stock from Retrophin Inc., a pharmaceutical firm he started and was later fired from, in order to pay off debts from other business dealings, such as those associated with MSMB Capital, a hedge fund he previously managed that went on to lose millions, according to
NBC. The federal government had apparently been investigating him since January, months before he broke into national headlines.
Also charged was his attorney, who is accused of helping Shkreli with this alleged scheme.