While Martin “Pharma Bro” Shkreli has been imprisoned since September 2017, convicted of defrauding investors, among other crimes, it appears he’s still running his company.
According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Shkreli is “at work on a big second act.”
Shkreli does not have the same power he once did as founder and CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals AG. For one, the company has been renamed Phoenixus AG, to distance itself from Shkreli.
Nevertheless, the WSJ suggests that Shkreli “still helps call the shots.” Using a contraband smartphone from his prison cell, Shkreli’s involvement even has gone so far as reportedly firing the CEO Kevin Mulleady, whom Shkreli had appointed.
Shkreli reportedly spends much of his free time researching diseases and pharmaceuticals, plotting to acquire more drugs and invest in research and development. If Shkreli’s calculations hold up, Phoenixus could be worth $3.7 billion when he becomes a free man in 2023.
Shkreli, still a company shareholder, is being investigated by the FBI for continuing to be involved in the company. While the WSJ was unable to interview Shkreli in prison, the report notes the prison inmate handbook prohibits “conducting a business in any way.”