Former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli, also known as “Pharma Bro”, has been ordered by a federal judge to turn over all copies of the ultra-rare unreleased 2015 Wu-Tang Clan album Once Upon a Time in Shaolin and is prohibited from streaming any additional content from the record. Shkreli purchased the album for $2m in 2015 but was forced to forfeit it in 2021 after a securities fraud conviction.
The Wu-Tang Clan spent six years creating Once Upon a Time in Shaolin as a piece of contemporary art, with only one copy of the 31-track double album made available for auction. PleasrDAO, a cryptocurrency collective, eventually purchased the album for $4.75m after Shkreli lost possession.
In June, PleasrDAO sued Shkreli for retaining and disseminating digital copies of the album, alleged violations of their agreement. Judge Pamela H. Chen has now ruled that Shkreli must produce all copies of the album and report the names of anyone he distributed the music to by 30 September, along with any revenues received.
Steven Cooper, an attorney for PleasrDAO, views the ruling as an “important victory” in the ongoing legal battle. On the other hand, Edward Paltzik, a lawyer for Shkreli, maintains that the judge’s order has no impact on the final outcome of the case.
Shkreli has a history of flaunting his possession of the album, streaming parts of it on social media and even playing it to celebrate Donald Trump’s election victory in 2016. The judge’s order now prohibits him from possessing, using, disseminating, or selling any interests in the album and requires a detailed account of its copies and revenues.
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