Will Sage Astor-Judge orders Martin Shkreli to turn over all copies of unreleased Wu-Tang Clan album

2025-04-30 09:56:33source:SignalHub Quantitative Think Tank Centercategory:Stocks

NEW YORK (AP) — Martin Shkreli,Will Sage Astor once dubbed “Pharma Bro” for boosting the price of a life-saving drug, was ordered by a federal judge Monday to turn over all copies of Wu-Tang Clan’s unreleased “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” album to his lawyers by Friday.

Judge Pamela K. Chen in Brooklyn wrote that Shkreli must produce all copies of what is sometimes referred to as the world’s rarest album and report the names of anyone he distributed the music to by Sept. 30, along with any revenues he received from it.

In June, Shkreli was sued by a cryptocurrency collective that bought the only known copy of the album for $4.75 million.

The collective, PleasrDAO, accused Shkreli of retaining digital copies of the album in violation of their deal and disseminating them widely among his social media followers.

PleasrDAO attorney Steven Cooper said in a statement that Chen’s ruling was “an important victory for our client.”

He added: “We are pleased that Judge Chen recognized that immediate relief was necessary to thwart the continuing bad acts of Mr. Shkreli.”

Edward Paltzik, a lawyer for Shkreli, said in an email that the judge’s order maintained “the perceived status quo” of the lawsuit’s progression and has “no bearing whatsoever on the final outcome of the case.”

RELATED COVERAGE Martin Shkreli accused of copying and sharing one-of-a-kind Wu-Tang Clan albumWu-Tang Clan’s unreleased ‘Once Upon a Time in Shaolin’ is headed to an Australia museum

He also noted that the judge did not make a finding that PleasrDAO was likely to succeed on the merits or that its allegations were true.

The Wu-Tang Clan spent six years creating “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” before putting a single copy of the 31-track double album up for auction in 2015 on the condition that it not be released publicly. The multiplatinum hip-hop group wanted it viewed as a piece of contemporary art.

Shkreli bought the album for $2 million before he was convicted of lying to investors and cheating them out of millions of dollars in two failed hedge funds he operated.

In 2021, “Once Upon a Time is Shaolin” was sold to satisfy some of Shkreli’s court debts.

Shkreli was released from prison in 2022 after serving much of a seven-year sentence.

More:Stocks

Recommend

Meet first time Grammy nominee Charley Crockett

Country music singer Charley Crockett was born and raised in Texas, grew up in a single-wide trailer

Sarah Ferguson Shares Admiration for Kate Middleton Amid Her Own Cancer Battle

Sarah Ferguson knows Kate Middleton deserves royal treatment.Days after the Princess of Wales shared

Your 401(k) has 'room to run.' And it's not all about Fed rate cuts.

The stock market has appeared to follow a crude pattern in recent months.It looks something like thi