Disgraced “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli is making a big claim from prison that could usher in a number of medical breakthroughs. The question is: Do you trust that Shkreli is telling the truth?
In a prison-penned letter to CBS News correspondent Steve Dorsey, the former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO claims he’s “nearing a breakthrough on selective kallikrein-related protease inhibitors, a discovery with much alter the course of several human diseases.” This claim comes with Shkreli incarcerated in Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center and waiting for a sentencing following his conviction on three securities fraud and conspiracy charges relating to the management of the investment funds.
The promise of advancements in fighting disease is enticing, but the man offering the breakthroughs is largely despised by the public and things like jacking up the price of a live-saving drug for cancer and AIDS patients can explain why. A self-styled Wu-Tang disrespecting heel, Shkreli declined an offer to be interviewed by CBS News citing “the media’s poor standing in the eyes of the populace.” In the handwritten letter, he claimed further correspondce “would delay my efforts for, at best, selfish reasons, but more likely waste my time.” The message was capped off with a P.S. note saying “Donald Trump is your president, too.”
History suggests that Shkreli won’t be shy to gab about his near “breakthroughs” if they prove to be real.
(Via CBS News)