“Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli Says He’ll Cure Coronavirus If He’s Released From Prison

Martin Shkreli, the notorious former pharmaceutical executive who is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence for fraud, has promised to cure CoViD-19 if authorities release him from prison for a few months.

Shkreli says that the current efforts being made by pharmaceutical companies are “inadequate.” He claims to have the perfect solution to the problem.

“I am one of the few executives experienced in ALL aspects of drug development from molecule creation and hypothesis generation, to preclinical assessments and clinical trial design/target engagement demonstration, and manufacturing/synthesis and global logistics and deployment of medicines,” Shkreli wrote in a document where he lays out his plans.

“I am asking for a brief furlough (3 months) to assist in research work on COVID-19. Being released to the post-COVID world is no solace to even the incarcerated,” he added.

Shkreli says that he has already begun working on the project with two associates that he refers to as “citizen scientists.” Kevin Mulleady, the co-founder of Shkreli’s biotech company “Prospero Pharmaceuticals,” is also listed as an author on the paper.

The small team has used computer models to search through libraries of known drug compounds to find the substances that are most likely to target the key enzyme in the novel coronavirus. They claim to have found eight compounds that are prime candidates for treatment, including clofazimine, an antibiotic that has been used to treat leprosy.

“From here, many different research projects are currently in progress, including a continuation of current work around both the computational and manual design of analogs for highly scoring compounds such as clofazimine,” the document states.

Shkreli’s defense attorney Ben Brafman advocated for his release in a statement on Tuesday.

“I have always said that if focused and left in a lab, Martin could help cure cancer. Maybe he can help the scientific community better understand this terrible virus,” Brafman said.

Shkreli promised that he does not “expect to profit in any way, shape or form from coronavirus-related treatments.”

“I believe any company developing a coronavirus drug should seek to recoup its cost at most and be willing to perform the work as a civil service at the least. If the government is willing to reward industry for their work on this catastrophic situation, it will be at each company’s discretion to accept, negotiate or deny such funding,” he added.