Why hated CEO Martin Shkreli is worse than you thought

REPUGNANT CEO Martin Shkreli increased the price of lifesaving drugs by 5000 per cent. Now he has been forced to resign from his own company.

REPUGNANT CEO Martin Shkreli increased the price of lifesaving drugs by 5000 per cent. Now he has been forced to resign from his own company.

Shkreli resigned overnight as CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, one day after federal authorities charged him in an unrelated securities fraud scheme.

The privately held company said Ron Tilles, chairman of the biopharmaceutical firm, will serve as interim CEO while retaining his current position.

“We wish to thank Martin for helping us build Turing Pharmaceuticals into the dynamic research focused company it is today, and wish him the best in his future endeavors, Mr Tilles said in a statement. “At the same time, I am very excited about the opportunity to guide Turing Pharmaceuticals forward.”

Shkreli has called himself “the world’s most eligible bachelor” on Twitter — and just days before his bust bragged, “I’m the most successful Albanian to ever walk the face of this Earth.”

But Martin Shkreli’s most impressive achievement could well be the unanimous rage he inspires from everyone from price-gouged AIDS patients to rappers to federal prosecutors.

“KARMAS A B**CH,” actress Debra Messing tweeted on Thursday, summing up reaction to the news that the businessman is now facing up to 20 years behind bars for an alleged Ponzi scheme.

KARMAS A BITCH https://t.co/MSrOgRpGXI

— Debra Messing (@DebraMessing) December 17, 2015

The New York Post reports that the 32-year-old hedge-funder and entrepreneur, who was raised in Brooklyn, by Albanian immigrants, remains most notorious for hiking the price of a lifesaving cancer and AIDS drug, Daraprim, jacking up the cost per pill from $US13.50 to $US750.

Two months later, in September, the baby-faced braggart was revealed as the buyer of a one-of-a-kind album by the Wu-Tang Clan. He paid $US2 million for the album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin — on the condition that no one else can ever listen to it without his OK.

Nabbed ... Martin Shkreli is escorted by law enforcement agents in New York. Picture: AP

“I’m not going to play it for no reason,” he bragged to the music-news site HipHopDX in an interview that ran last December 9, a week before his fraud bust.

“If Taylor Swift wants to come over and suck my d**k, I’ll play it for her,” he said, laughing.

Following the Daraprim outrage, the Wu-Tang Clan distanced itself from Shkreli, with member RZA, reportedly saying it had given part of the proceeds to charity.

Out ... Martin Shkreli leaves the courthouse after his arraignment in New York. Picture: AP

Shkreli fancies himself an aspiring rapper himself.

“All these guys rap about is money, and I have a lot to say ... I make money,” he boasted.

“That’s what I do. That’s why I can f**king afford a f**king $2 million album.

“What do you think I do, make cookies? No, motherf**ker. I sell drugs,” he added with a laugh.

The Wu-Tang album isn’t his only pathetic grasp at the mantle of fame.

Price hike ... Martin Shkreli's company Turing Pharmaceuticals has purchased the rights to the drug Daraprim and increased it's price by over 5000 per cent. Picture: Supplied

Last year, he boasted of owning another celebrity trophy — Kurt Cobain’s credit card.

“Wonder if it still works,” he tweeted with a photo of the Nirvana frontman’s card.

Shkreli said his Murray Hill apartment boasts furnishings even blingier than the album, which came in a specially designed box.

Reviled ... Martin Shkreli, CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals AG. Picture: Supplied

“I’m staring at a Picasso in my living room right now that’s no different from the Wu-Tang box except it’s about 20 times more expensive. It is what it is,” he sneered in the HipHopDX interview.

And there are even more reasons to love to hate Shkreli.

On his OKCupid page, he boasted that he’s really good at “Making drugs that save people’s lives. Hanging out on the internet. Generating shareholder value. Eye rolls.”

Did you know you can message Martin Shkreli on Facebook? I decided to send him best wishes after his rough day. pic.twitter.com/kjLJdRZud1

— Charles Clymer (@cmclymer) December 18, 2015

Someone buy firm defending Martin Shkreli then sell him billable hours at 700 times the price. https://t.co/lchvoxHsQf

— Nia Vardalos (@NiaVardalos) December 17, 2015

So @MartinShkreli raised the price of AIDS drug 5000% & just bought sole copy of the new Wu-Tang Clan album. Biggest douche bag on earth.

— Harry Cook (@HarryCook) December 10, 2015