- Turkish Justice Minister Akın Gürlek confirmed Richard James Schueler, known as Richard Heart, was detained in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district on Oct. 14, 2026, along with his wife and three bodyguards.
- Searches at 15 addresses yielded $7.15 million in U.S. currency, 160,000 Turkish lira, six cold wallets, firearms, ammunition, luxury goods and electronic devices.
- The operation followed an Interpol Red Notice; the minister cited allegations of a $1 billion crypto fraud involving the U.S. and Finland.
Turkish authorities have officially confirmed the detention of Hex and PulseChain founder Richard Heart, marking a significant development in the international pursuit of the controversial crypto entrepreneur.
In a post on X on Oct. 17, Justice Minister Akın Gürlek stated that Heart, a U.S. citizen whose legal name is Richard James Schueler, was apprehended on Oct. 14 in Beşiktaş during an operation coordinated by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, police intelligence and financial crimes units, with support from the National Intelligence Organization (MİT). Three individuals identified as his bodyguards were also detained in follow-up actions.
Searches across 15 addresses in Beşiktaş, Üsküdar and Sarıyer recovered $7.15 million in U.S. dollars, 160,000 Turkish lira, six cryptocurrency cold wallets, 28 watches, 97 pieces of jewelry, 300 bags, electronic devices including 29 phones and 19 graphics cards, as well as four long-barreled rifles, three unlicensed pistols and 1,400 rounds of ammunition, according to the minister’s statement. State media reported that nine vehicles registered to Heart’s wife were impounded. Judicial proceedings and examination of the seized materials continue, Gürlek said.
“We will not allow anyone to view Turkey as a safe harbor for evading justice,” Gürlek wrote, emphasizing ongoing international cooperation against transnational crimes.
The minister described the Interpol Red Notice as related to allegations of a $1 billion cryptocurrency fraud in the United States and Finland. Heart launched Hex in 2018 as a high-yield “blockchain certificate of deposit.” In 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged him and entities Hex, PulseChain and PulseX with unregistered offerings that raised more than $1 billion, plus fraud for misappropriating at least $12 million for luxury purchases including a large black diamond. A U.S. federal judge dismissed the SEC case in February 2025 on jurisdictional grounds, and the agency declined to refile, according to Reuters. Separate Finnish proceedings related to alleged aggravated tax fraud prompted the Red Notice.
The confirmation, first detailed by The Block, underscores heightened global enforcement attention on high-profile crypto figures. Hex and related tokens have historically faced significant price volatility amid legal developments surrounding their founder. No immediate market reaction data was available at the time of the confirmation, and Heart has not publicly commented on the detention in available reports.
