Nancy Retzlaff, chief commercial officer at New York-based Turing Pharmaceuticals, has filed a federal complaint against the company, claiming she was sexually assaulted by one of Turing's founders and then retaliated against by company leaders, according to The New York Times.
The accusations follow a string of bombshells in the story of Turing Pharmaceuticals, whose former CEO Martin Shkreli was arrested on securities and wire fraud charges in December 2015.
In her lawsuit, Ms. Retzlaff claims she and other Turing executives traveled to Washington, D.C., in March for a hearing before Congress. Ms. Retzlaff alleges she was sexually assaulted by Turing co-founder Edwin Urrutia while at a hotel. She did not report the assault, according to the article.
After that incident and other sexual advances at a number of other company functions, Ms. Retzlaff said a co-worker reported Mr. Urrutia to Turing, which launched an independent investigation that substantiated her claims of assault. Mr. Urrutia resigned in "in lieu of termination," according to the report.
However, following Mr. Urrutia's resignation, Ms. Retzlaff alleges others at Turing retaliated against her for causing Mr. Urrutia to leave. She claims that following his departure, executives told her she was no longer an eligible candidate for CEO.
The complaint also accuses Mr. Shkreli of "sexist and vulgar behavior [which] set the tone for the office atmosphere," despite leaving the company before the incident.
In a phone interview with the NYT, Mr. Shkreli denied accusations of sexism at the company and denied Ms. Retzlaff's claims that she had been retaliated against. He also praised her as a talented executive.
Ms. Retzlaff, Mr. Urrutia and Turing Pharmaceuticals declined to comment on the allegations.