After five years in the clink, infamous inside trader Sam Waksal is now on the outside.
The high-living ImClone founder, who tipped off Martha Stewart when his company’s stock was about to tank in 2001, just enjoyed a luxurious weekend furlough from his new home at a Bronx halfway house – a perk that angered his fellow residents, sources said.
His new digs at the Bronx Community Re-entry Center – a dorm-like building off the Grand Concourse – are a far cry from the razor-wired walls of the federal lockup in Milan, Mich., but still a world away from his opulent SoHo loft.
A source at the 120-inmate halfway house confirmed that Waksal, who is referred to as the “Martha Stewart guy,” arrived Thursday and promptly got VIP treatment.
“They blocked off the whole reception area just for him,” the source said, adding that most inmates wait hours to be processed. “Then the director told everyone else that they can’t talk to reporters about him.”
After a night in the center – he shared a room with another con on the second floor – Waksal was sprung for the weekend. He was picked up in a SUV on Friday and didn’t return until Sunday.
He was spotted returning again to the building at around 8:30 last night after a day out, toting a shopping bag from Smythson, an exclusive British stationery and leather-goods store on West 57th Street.
“He’s got money, so he gets to do what he wants,” the source said.
Other inmates grumbled that the rules usually require residents to receive two paychecks before they can get the weekend off, the source said. Waksal also gets a 15-hour day pass to work outside the facility, the source added.
“He gets special treatment. Do you know how much this guy is worth?” another inmate said.
Waksal, 60, is in the home stretch of a reduced seven-year sentence for securities fraud, conspiracy, obstruction and perjury for selling his company stock before the public learned that a long-promised cancer drug wouldn’t be approved by the FDA.
Oliver Seabrook, the director of the center and brother of Councilman Larry Seabrook, declined to comment, as did Geo Corp., its parent company.
In December 2001, Waksal learned that the FDA would not approve his cancer drug, Erbitux. He dumped $10 million of his company stock before the news was public, then warned friends and relatives to do the same.
Waksal pleaded guilty in October 2002 and did five years.