The saga of Turkish cryptocurrency exchange Thodex continues, with the founder finally being brought home two years after the platform ceased trading.
Thodex founder and former CEO Faruk Fatih Ozer has been extradited from Albania to Turkey, Cointelegraph Turkey reported. Local police detained the 27-year-old man upon his arrival at Istanbul airport on April 20 on charges of fraud and money laundering, state-run news agency Anadolu Agency reported.
According to reports, the plane carrying Ozer took off from the Albanian capital Tirana in the morning and landed at Istanbul Airport. The Istanbul Airport Police Department detained Ozer. The detained founder is expected to undergo a health check before being taken to the Istanbul police station . On April 22, 2021, Ozer arrived in Turkey almost two years after a police raid on his office was reported and the Thodex exchange abruptly halted trading and withdrawals. Local publications speculated that the suspension was part of an exit scam involving ho Ozer fled Turkey to steal at least $2 billion worth of cryptocurrency from Thodex. Interpol subsequently issued a Red Notice for Ozer, who reportedly traveled to Albania.
The fugitive founder was arrested in Albania in August 2022, about a year after Thodex collapsed. In addition, Turkish police arrested 62 people in connection with the Thodex exit scam, as well as some siblings of the then-missing CEO.
