Martin Shkreli: Homeless charity will return $15,000 donation after arrest of Turing Pharmaceuticals ex-CEO

Charity says it feels unable to keep donation over HIV drug hike

Martin Shkreli, the former CEO of Turing Pharmaceutical, being arrested for securities fraud (Andrew Burton/Getty Images)

A homeless charity is returning a $15,000 donation from Martin Shkreli, the ex-CEO of a drugs company which dramatically increased the price of a life-saving drug, after he was arrested by the FBI on Thursday.

The New York based Community Solutions (CS) said it is returning the donation from Shkreli a day after he was charged with security fraud over allegations he illegally took stock from a biotechnology firm he launched in 2011 to pay off debts from unrelated business dealings.

Shkreli resigned from Turing Pharmaceuticals a day after his arrest.

His 5,000 per cent price hike on Daraprim, a drug used by patients with HIV and cancer, led to the 32-year-old being dubbed “the most hated man in America”. Jake Maguire, a spokesperson for CS, told Reuters it felt morally unable to keep the donation.

“We serve people who depend on access to AIDS meds every day, and as an organisation I don’t think we can keep this money.”

Shkreli has claimed he donates “millions” to charity on Twitter. In January, he launched a charitable foundation which is run by his sister and lists a $1 million donation to the New York's Hunter College High School, which he attended as a teenager.

On its website, the Shkreli Foundation says it is "dedicated to helping people facing a variety of adversities”.

Shkreli has denied the allegations against him and released a statement saying he is confident he will be cleared of all charges. He has been released on a $5 million bail.