A Brooklyn judge ordered pharmaceuticals investor Martin Shkreli to hand over all copies he might have made of the very rare Wu-Tang Clan album “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” by Friday.
The 41-year-old businessman known as “Pharma Bro” purchased the one-of-a-kind album at an auction for $2 million in 2015. In 2021, he sold it to cryptocurrency group PleasrDAO for $4.75 million to pay off his fines and legal fees related to his conviction on securities fraud.
PleasrDAO claims Shkreli made duplicates of the album and then distributed the digital recordings after he sold it. The album was never meant to be released publicly.
Shkreli, made infamous for driving up the cost of a life-saving AIDS medication, was convicted in 2017 of swindling investors involved in hedge funds he controlled. He was released from prison in 2022.
“Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” was the seventh album recorded by Wu-Tang Clan over the course of 12 years. The rappers only made one copy of the 31-track album.
Judge Pamela K. Chen required that Shkreli not only surrender all copies he made of the album, but that he also provide the names of everyone he distributed the music to and report any money he may have received in the process.
An attorney representing PleasrDAO thanked the judge for taking the action “necessary to thwart the continuing bad acts of Mr. Shkreli,” according to The Associated Press.
Shkreli’s lawyer said the new ruling doesn’t mean allegations of wrongdoing against Shkreli are true.
The Wu-Tang Clan formed in Staten Island in 1992. Band members have included Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Ghostface Killa, U-God, Method Man, Raekwon and RZA, among others.
Earlier this year, PleasrDAO announced it would be offering fans an opportunity to hear limited pieces of “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” for $1.
With News Wire Services
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