‘Pharma Bro’ Martin Shkreli Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison

Martin Shkreli, better known to many as the “Pharma Bro,” has been sentenced to serve seven years in prison.

TMZ reports that on March 9, a judge handed down the sentence in a securities fraud case against the entrepreneur. Additionally, he will be forced to pay out over $7 million in restitution to the victims he was convicted of defrauding.

The outlet also reported that Shkreli sobbed in court, saying, “I’m here because of my gross, stupid negligent mistakes.”

“I want the people who came here today to support me to understand one thing, the only person to blame for me being here today is me,” he reportedly added, per ABC News. “I took down Martin Shkreli.”

“I am terribly sorry I lost your trust,” Shkreli continued. “You deserve far better.”

The judge made sure to clarify the seriousness of Shkreli’s crimes, telling the court, “This case is not about Mr. Shkreli’s self-cultivated public persona … nor his controversial statements about politics or culture.”

Jacquelyn Kasulis, an Assistant U.S. Attorney, commented on the sentencing, echoing the judge’s statement that while Shkreli may be considered the “the most hated man in America,” he is being punished for a crime he committed, not because of his personality.

“I also want to make clear that Mr. Shkreli is not a child,” Kasulis continued. “He’s not a teenager who just needs some mentoring. He is a man who needs to take responsibility for his actions.”

In August 2017, Shkreli was found guilty of securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The charges and conviction against him stem from when he was the head of Retrophin, a drug company, as well as a series of hedge funds he was managing at the time.

While he was found guilty on three charges, he was also not convicted on five other charges, which included wire fraud.

It was in 2015 when Shkreli was first arrested after he was accused of trying to repay millions of dollars in investor money by offering them stock in a new drug company start-up.

During the trial, his defense lawyer attempted to paint him as innocent based on the fact that they claimed many of the investors opted into the deal and received a big payday from it. They argued that just because people may not like him, that doesn’t automatically make him a “Ponzi guy.”

The same year he was arrested, Shkreli made headlines by increasing the cost of Daraprim, an AIDS medication, by 5,000%. This caused the price of the drug to jump to $750 per pill.

After the guilty verdict was handed down, Shkreli said, “This was a witch hunt of epic proportions.”