FTC and seven states ask court to hold Martin Shkreli in contempt over pharma ban
Federal regulators say the former pharmaceutical executive traded shares in at least 60 drug companies and publicly commented on the industry since his May 2022 release from prison, despite a lifetime ban.
A motion in Manhattan
The Federal Trade Commission and seven US states asked a federal judge on Tuesday, 13 October 2026, to hold Martin Shkreli in civil contempt for repeatedly violating a lifetime ban from the pharmaceutical industry. The motion was filed in federal court in Manhattan, and the attorneys general of New York and six other states joined the FTC in the accusation. A federal judge imposed the ban in 2022 after Shkreli was convicted of illegally raising the price of the drug Daraprim. Government lawyers say he returned to the drug business only months later. Shkreli, 43, is widely known as 'Pharma Bro'.
The FTC's commissioner, Mark R. Meador, said in a statement that Shkreli has defied the court's order.
Mr. Shkreli has repeatedly ignored the injunction's clear and unambiguous prohibitions and has shown little regard for the obligations imposed on him as a result of his prior illegal conduct.
What the regulators allege
According to the filing, Shkreli has traded stocks in at least 60 pharmaceutical companies since his release from prison in May 2022 and has publicly commented on how many of those companies are run. The regulators say he publicized these activities through livestreams and posts on YouTube, X and Reddit. In one livestream he told viewers he was showing them how to trade and invest in biotech, the FTC said. In another, he allegedly described a 'magic trick' built on finding biotech stocks to short. The FTC also alleges he used his livestreams to organize public campaigns to short pharmaceutical stocks on predictions that companies' clinical trials would fail.
Remedies sought
The regulators want the court to go beyond a fine for past conduct. They ask for a complete accounting of Shkreli's pharmaceutical stock trades and for him to divest any ownership in pharmaceutical companies. The filing also seeks a monetary fine equal to the profits he made through the alleged violations. For any future violations, the regulators ask for clear and escalating consequences, including additional fines and incarceration. The FTC's court filing puts the request directly.
Shkreli should be held in civil contempt and face sanctions to purge his current contempt and to coerce his future compliance.
Background and response
The original case centred on Daraprim, a drug used to treat parasitic infections such as malaria and toxoplasmosis. Prosecutors said Shkreli's company raised its price to $750 a tablet while blocking rival drugmakers from winning approval for generic alternatives. Shkreli was arrested in 2015, convicted in 2017 on eight counts including securities fraud, and sentenced in 2018 to seven years in federal prison. He was released from prison in May 2022, the same year a US court fined him $64.6m.
- Shkreli arrested
- Convicted on eight counts, including securities fraud
- Sentenced to seven years in federal prison
- Released from prison
- FTC and seven states file contempt motion
A working telephone number for Shkreli could not be found on Tuesday, and lawyers who represented him in his civil trial did not immediately return calls. He also did not immediately respond to emailed questions.
