Martin Shkreli, 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 also 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, a cryptocurrency collective known as PleasrDAO initiated legal action against Shkreli, who had sold the sole existing copy of the album for $4.75 million. The collective accused him of unlawfully retaining digital copies of the album, thereby breaching their agreement, and of widely distributing these copies to his followers on social media.
Attorney Steven Cooper, representing PleasrDAO, stated that Judge Chen’s ruling constituted a significant victory for their client. He expressed satisfaction that the judge acknowledged the necessity for immediate intervention to prevent Mr. Shkreli’s ongoing misconduct.
Edward Paltzik, the attorney representing Shkreli, stated in an email that the judge’s ruling simply maintained the current status of the lawsuit and did not influence the final outcome of the case. He further pointed out that the judge did not conclude that PleasrDAO was likely to succeed on the merits of the case or that its claims were validated.
The Wu-Tang Clan dedicated six years to the creation of “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” before auctioning a single copy of the 31-track double album in 2015, stipulating that it should not be released to the public. The multiplatinum hip-hop group intended for it to be regarded as a work 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.
