Turkish Authorities Detain Hex Founder Richard Heart in Istanbul on Interpol Red Notice

Turkish law enforcement authorities have detained Richard Heart, the controversial founder of the Hex cryptocurrency, during a targeted security operation in Istanbul. According to local reports citing the Turkish news agency IHA, Heart was apprehended on Wednesday based on an active Interpol Red Notice issued at the request of Finnish authorities.

Heart, whose legal name is Richard James Schueler, was taken into custody alongside his wife during the early morning hours in an operation coordinated jointly by the Istanbul Police Department and Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization, known as MIT. Prior to the raid, local law enforcement had reportedly kept Heart’s residential address under close surveillance in the upscale Beşiktaş district of Istanbul.

During the search of the premises, Turkish authorities seized a substantial collection of items. According to the IHA report, officers confiscated a dozen mobile phones, multiple laptops, specialized graphics cards, several rifles and pistols, two drones, valuable gold bracelets, and a large quantity of cash denominated in various foreign currencies.

An Interpol Red Notice functions as an international alert system, serving as a request to law enforcement agencies worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest an individual pending potential extradition or similar legal proceedings. It is important to note that a Red Notice does not constitute a formal international arrest warrant. Interpol officially issued the notice for Heart in 2024 following formal requests from Finland. While the primary charge listed on the official notice is aggravated tax fraud, Finnish authorities have also pursued him regarding separate allegations involving assault. Reports from local media, including the Daily Sabah, have further characterized the legal actions as being tied to high-value cryptocurrency fraud schemes.

Heart and Hex

Richard Heart originally launched Hex back in 2018, promoting the digital asset to retail investors as a high-yield "blockchain certificate of deposit." The cryptocurrency quickly gained a polarized reputation within the broader digital asset community, attracting a fiercely loyal following of supporters while drawing severe skepticism and scrutiny from financial experts and regulators alike.

The most prominent regulatory battle faced by Heart arose in July 2023, when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) formally charged Heart alongside three corporate entities under his control: Hex, PulseChain, and PulseX. The regulatory agency alleged that Heart and his organizations had conducted unregistered offerings of crypto asset securities, collectively raising more than $1 billion from unsuspecting investors. Furthermore, the SEC complaint accused Heart of fraudulently misappropriating at least $12 million in investor funds to finance an extravagant lifestyle. According to the federal regulatory filing, these diverted funds were allegedly used to acquire a series of ultra-luxury goods, including high-end sports cars, expensive watches, and a massive 555-carat black diamond famously known to the public as "The Enigma."

Despite the severity of the U.S. regulatory crackdown, the SEC’s case against Heart encountered a major legal roadblock in early 2025. A federal judge formally dismissed the SEC’s complaint in February 2025, citing a fundamental lack of jurisdictional authority. The presiding judge determined that Heart’s operational activities and marketing efforts were not sufficiently or clearly aimed at investors residing within the United States. Following the dismissal, the SEC faced a strict court-imposed deadline to amend its filings by April of that same year. When the agency ultimately declined to pursue further amendments, the high-profile U.S. case effectively came to a close—an outcome that legal representation for Heart publicly heralded as a complete victory.

As developments unfold in Istanbul following his recent apprehension, it remains unclear whether Finnish authorities have formally submitted an extradition request to the Turkish government to secure Heart’s transfer to Finland to face the pending charges.