$1 billion in wire transfers from Sackler family discovered

The New York attorney general's office said it found a previously unknown $1 billion in wire transfers by the Sackler family, the owners of pharmaceutical giant Purdue Pharma.

Authorities added that millions of dollars of the uncovered wire transfers involved Mortimer D.A. Sackler, a former Purdue board member who the statement alleged transferred millions of dollars from trust companies through Swiss bank accounts to himself.

The Sacklers recently reached a tentative settlement that requires the family to pay $3 billion of their own fortune in cash over the next seven years.

Purdue's accusers claim the company's misleading advertising helped ignite America's opioid crisis as sales of OxyContin helped the family build a $13 billion fortune.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The New York attorney general's office said it found $1 billion in wire transfers by the Sackler family, the owners of pharmaceutical giant Purdue Pharma.

The finding comes as the family faces a growing number of lawsuits over their role in the opioid crisis in ownership because of their ties to OxyContin-maker Purdue.

New York Attorney General Letitia James has reportedly subpoenaed 33 financial institutions to uncover more information about the Sackler family's wealth. The filing includes findings from just one unnamed institution, NBC News reported.

“While the Sacklers continue to lowball victims and skirt a responsible settlement, we refuse to allow the family to misuse the courts in an effort to shield their financial misconduct,” James said in a statement reported with the filing.

Read more: The makers of OxyContin just tentatively settled 2,000 lawsuits on their role in the opioid crisis. Meet the Sacklers, who built their $13 billion fortune off the controversial prescription drug.

Authorities added that millions of dollars of the uncovered wire transfers involved Mortimer D.A. Sackler, a former Purdue board member who the statement alleged transferred millions of dollars from trust companies through Swiss bank accounts to himself.

“Already these records have allowed the state to identify previously unknown shell companies that one of the Sackler defendants used to shift Purdue money through accounts around the world and then conceal it in at least two separate multi-million dollar real estate investments,” the filing said, according to NBC News.

Sackler told CNN after the filing that “there is nothing newsworthy about these decade-old transfers, which were perfectly legal and appropriate in every respect.”

“This is a cynical attempt by a hostile AG's office to generate defamatory headlines to try to torpedo a mutually beneficial settlement that is supported by so many other states and would result in billions of dollars going to communities and individuals across the country that need help,” Sackler told the outlet.

Mortimer D.A. Sackler, a former Purdue board member. It alleges that Sackler, at least one of which was previously unknown, through Swiss bank accounts to himself as early as 2009. Some of the funds were directed to real estate companies that owned Sackler family homes in Manhattan and the Hamptons, the filings said.

The Sacklers tentatively agreed to pay out of pocket to resolve thousands of lawsuits against Purdue, according to The New York Times. The tentative settlement requires the Sacklers to pay $3 billion of their own fortune in cash over the next seven years, The Times reported.

The deal came after state attorneys general first asked the Sacklers to pay $4.5 billion for suits from two dozen states and 2,300 local governments, according to NPR.

The Times noted that Purdue will most likely file for bankruptcy and be split into separate companies. A new company will continue to sell OxyContin, with all proceeds benefiting the plaintiffs.

Purdue's accusers claim the company's misleading advertising helped ignite America's opioid crisis, Business Insider previously reported. Sales of OxyContin helped the family build a $13 billion fortune.