Thodex Founder Discovered Dead In Turkish Prison While Serving 11,196-Year Sentence
Thodex founder and former CEO Faruk Fatih Ozer has been found dead in his single-person cell at the Tekirdag F-Type High Security Closed Prison while serving an 11,196-year sentence.
According to local news outlet Türkiye Today, authorities discovered the failed crypto exchange founder hanging in his bathroom during an inspection.
Reports suggest the likely cause is suicide, but officials have launched a formal investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.
“An investigation has been opened on this matter and is ongoing,” said Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç in a statement. “The exact cause of death will be determined as a result of the investigation.”
Thodex Founder Arrested In Albania
Thodex was founded in 2017 and was once among the leading exchanges in Turkey before it abruptly halted operations in April 2021. Shortly after announcing the “temporary suspension,” Ozer fled to Albania and allegedly took investors’ funds with him.
He was arrested in Albania in August 2022 after an international manhunt and was extradited to Turkey in April 2023.
Prosecutors had accused him of defrauding more than 40,000 investors, and alleged that ₺253.7 million ($8.9 million) worth of crypto assets had been transferred to wallets that Ozer and his associates controlled. The Financial Crimes Investigation Board reported that the total damages reached ₺356 million ($12.5 million).
Twenty one defendants were tried in the case, of which seven were detained and sixteen were acquitted for a lack of evidence.
Ozer was convicted of multiple charges that included establishing and leading a criminal organization, money laundering, and aggravated fraud. He was sentenced to a historic 11,196 years in prison.
His siblings were also convicted on similar charges and received identical sentences.
Ozer had served 10 months and 15 days of his sentence.
Turkey Leads The MENA Crypto Market In Annual Transactions
While the Thodex collapse shook Turkey‘s crypto landscape and left thousands of investors without recourse, the country remains the largest crypto market in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Data from Chainalysis shows that Turkey recorded nearly $200 billion in annual transactions.
Top countries in MENA by total value received (Chainalysis)
That is approximately four times the total recorded by the United Arab Emirates, which came in at second with its $53 billion in annual transactions.
Analysts have said that most of Turkey’s on-chain activity remains driven by short-term trading and is not necessarily due to long-term adoption.
“The country’s challenging economic circumstances seem to have driven substantial adoption of crypto for economic necessity, as an alternative financial infrastructure, and as a form of investment to escape financial hardship,” Chainalysis said in its report.
Since 2021, the nation has experienced “unparalleled expansion in gross cryptocurrency inflows,” according to Chainalysis.
“What’s particularly striking is how Turkey’s crypto adoption has maintained consistent upward momentum throughout successive waves of currency volatility and double-digit inflation rates,” the firm said.
“While these economic headwinds have created significant hardships for Turkish citizens, they appear to have catalyzed crypto adoption at an institutional scale rarely seen in emerging markets facing similar pressures,” Chainalysis added.
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