US: ‘Pharma bro’ Martin Shkreli fires his entire defense team

Martin Shkreli is just saying no to that “pharma bro” nickname, and to his own criminal defense team.

Shkreli, the controversial former pharmaceutical executive who is facing federal securities fraud charges, is looking to hire new defense attorneys for that case, according to a newly filed court document in New York City. And a judge on Tuesday afternoon gave him two weeks to do just that.

Shkreli’s current lawyers revealed his intention in a letter Monday that asked Brooklyn federal court Judge Kiyo Matsumoto to postpone a hearing in the case that’s currently scheduled for Wednesday.

Shkreli, 32, is charged in that criminal case with looting the pharma firm Retrophin, which he previously ran, in order to pay off investors in his hedge fund, who were themselves allegedly defrauded. The pharma whiz kid, who denies the charges, currently is free on $5 million bond, which is secured by an E-Trade brokerage account that had $45 million in it as of Jan. 6.

“Mr. Shkreli has indicated that he wishes to replace our firm as counsel and is in the process of retaining new counsel,” his lawyers, Marcus Asner and Baruch Weiss of the firm Arnold & Porter, wrote the judge.

Full content: The New York Times

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