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Oregon AG alleges Sacklers shifted $11 billion from Purdue

Published  August 30, 2019 5:03pm PDT
Associated Press

SALEM, Ore. — Oregon's attorney general said in a lawsuit the Sackler family siphoned $11 billion from Purdue Pharma L.P., the Oxycontin maker the family owns which is facing numerous lawsuits for allegedly triggering the nation's opioid epidemic.

Kristina Edmunson, spokeswoman for Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, said that amount is higher than some of the numbers other states have suggested, or what has previously been reported.

The lawsuit filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court says the Sackler family realized by 2007 that Purdue faced "catastrophic liability" from criminal and civil investigations and more than 100 lawsuits.

The lawsuit alleges the Sacklers took $11 billion from Purdue Pharma L.P., starving the company of cash and leaving it unable to satisfy its enormous legal liabilities.

Purdue's CEO has said the company could file for bankruptcy.