'Pharma Bro' Martin Shkreli Offers Survival Tips to Sam Bankman-Fried Ahead of Possible Jail Time: 'Sam Is Going to Have a Lot of Issues' Sam Bankman-Fried "isn't exactly gonna be somebody that fits into prison," Shkreli said.
By Sam Silverman •
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Martin Shkreli a.k.a. "Pharma Bro," has some advice from one ex-con to one accused fraudster.
Shkreli – who gained infamy in 2015 as a pharmaceuticals CEO that hiked the price of a lifesaving drug from $13 to $750 and was later found guilty of securities fraud — offered some slammer survival skills to now-disgraced former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried on crypto journalist Laura Shin's, "Unchained" podcast.
Ahead of Bankman-Fried's looming legal battle and possible incarceration, Shkreli said he should prepare for prison life and "reinvent" himself if he wants to make it behind bars.
"Sam is going to have a lot of issues because he is a bit of an effeminate guy and his demeanor — some people say autistic sort of sense, or sensibility — is not something that goes over well in prison," Shkreli said.
Shkreli was sentenced to prison in 2017 and released this past May after serving five years of a seven-year sentence.
Bankman-Fried, a.k.a. SBF, was arrested in the Bahamas earlier this month on several criminal fraud charges. He could face up to 115 years in prison after allegedly stealing billions in customer funds in a Ponzi Scheme between crypto exchange FTX and Alameda Research crypto trading firm. After being extradited to the U.S., SBF was released on a $250 million bond and is living with his parents in California as he awaits trial.
Shkreli's other advice includes saying SBF should shave his head, deepen his voice, and brush up on rap music, gangs, and "criminal culture."
While Shkreli said these changes "could save your life" on the inside, he also said the former crypto entrepreneur should hide his Ivy League education and privileged roots.
"He should probably start to reinvent his background and history because the rich white kid from a good neighborhood — that story doesn't sound great," Shkreli said.
