After the Justice Department filed a motion to revoke his bail over what he deemed “just a prank,” Martin Shkreli has filed a formal apology in federal court. Shkreli had posted on Facebook last week, saying, “On HRC’s book tour, try to grab a hair from her,” adding, “Will pay $5,000 per hair obtained from Hillary Clinton.” The DOJ was not amused, and moved to keep Shkreli locked up until his sentencing for a recent fraud conviction.
On Tuesday, Shkreli submitted a letter to Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto, apologizing to the court and his lawyer, for “my awkward attempt at humor or satire,” as he described it.
“I understand now, that some may have read my comments about Mrs. Clinton as threatening, when that was never my intention when making those comments,” Shkreli wrote. “I used poor judgment but never intended to cause alarm or promote any act of violence whatsoever.”
Shkreli noted that soon after he posted the message about Clinton, he posted again to say that he “was absolutely ‘not’ encouraging anyone to assault anyone.”
Martin Shkreli says he’s sorry for offering $5,000 to anyone who would “grab” some of Hillary Clinton’s hair, an “awkward attempt at humor.” pic.twitter.com/IzMjYEEwl2
— Brad Heath (@bradheath) September 12, 2017
When the Justice Department first filed their motion, Shkreli was less than apologetic, posting on Facebook that night, “Lol Hillary Clinton’s presumptive agents are hard at work. It was just a prank, bro!”
It remains to be seen how the court responds to this apology, and whether or not he will remain free before sentencing. Shkreli faces up to 20 years in prison for his crimes.
[Image via ABC10 screengrab]
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