Reuters – A U.S. judge on Friday barred Martin Shkreli in the pharmaceutical niche for life and ordered him to pay for $64.Six million after he famously raised the cost of Daraprim and fought to block generic competitors.
U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in Manhattan ruled after a trial where the U.S. Ftc and 7 states had accused Mr. Shkreli, the founder of Vyera Pharmaceuticals, of using illegal tactics to keep Daraprim rivals from the market.
Mr. Shkreli drew notoriety in 2022 after hiking Daraprim’s price overnight to $750 per tablet from $17.50. The drug treats toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that threatens people with weakened immune systems.
In a 130-page decision, Judge Cote faulted Mr. Shkreli for creating two companies, Vyera and Retrophin Inc, made to monopolize drugs so he could profit “around the backs” of patients, doctors and distributors.
She said the Daraprim scheme was “particularly heartless and coercive,” and a lifetime industry ban was needed due to the “real danger” that Mr. Shkreli could become a repeat offender.
“Shkreli’s anticompetitive conduct at the cost of the public health was flagrant and reckless,” the judge wrote. “He's unrepentant. Barring him from the opportunity to repeat that conduct is nothing if not within the interest of justice.”
Neither Mr. Shkreli’s lawyers nor the FTC immediately responded to requests for comment. The nonjury trial occured last month.
Mr. Shkreli is serving a seven-year prison sentence for securities fraud. He didn't attend the trial.
Vyera was founded in 2022 as Turing Pharmaceuticals, and purchased Daraprim from Impax Laboratories Inc in 2022.
Regulators accused Vyera of protecting its dominance of Daraprim by ensuring that generic drugmakers could not obtain samples for cheaper versions, and keeping potential rivals from buying a key ingredient.
The seven states joining the FTC case included California, Illinois, Ny, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
