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HEX Founder Richard Heart Arrested in Turkey Amid International Probe

Turkish authorities detain HEX and PulseChain founder Richard Heart following an INTERPOL Red Notice and seize $7.15M in assets.

Turkish authorities detain HEX and PulseChain founder Richard Heart following an INTERPOL Red Notice and seize $7.15M in assets. This is an original TLT brief based on reporting by TronWeekly, with live market data added, as of Sun, 18 Oct 2026 08:00:03 UTC.

Why it matters

The arrest highlights potential legal scrutiny of cryptocurrency projects and their founders, potentially impacting investor confidence and regulatory attitudes toward the sector.

Key takeaways
  • HEX and PulseChain founder Richard Heart arrested in Istanbul.
  • Turkish police seize $7.15M in cash, crypto wallets, and luxury goods.
  • Arrest follows INTERPOL Red Notice requested by Finland.
  • Seized evidence under examination by Turkish authorities.
The story so far · 2 briefs
  1. HEX Founder Richard Heart Detained in Istanbul Police Raid
  2. HEX Founder Richard Heart Arrested in Turkey Amid International Probe — this brief

Turkish authorities have detained Richard Heart, the founder of cryptocurrency projects HEX and PulseChain, in Istanbul following an international investigation.

The arrest was carried out by Turkish police, who searched 15 properties and seized a total of $7.15 million in assets, including cash, cryptocurrency wallets, luxury goods, and weapons.

The detention follows an INTERPOL Red Notice requested by Finland, suggesting a broader international effort to investigate Heart's activities.

Turkish authorities are currently examining the seized evidence, though specific charges have not been disclosed.

The arrest comes amid a period of relative stability in the broader cryptocurrency market, with the total market cap at $2.8 trillion and Bitcoin showing a modest 24-hour gain of 0.20%.

The market when this published · October 18, 2026
Total market cap$2.80T
Bitcoin 24h+0.20%
Ethereum 24h-0.80%
BTC dominance58.5%
Fear & Greed53 · Neutral
On-chain & primary-source check

Figures and sectors in this story, checked live against on-chain aggregators · October 18, 2026.

Bitcoin network hashrate1013 EH/sdifficulty 140.6Tmempool.space ↗

TLT reads these figures directly from on-chain aggregators (DeFiLlama, mempool.space) at build time — independent of what any outlet reported. Sector totals aggregate every protocol DeFiLlama tracks in that category. Values are live and will change.

HEX Founder Richard Heart Arrested in Turkey Amid Internatio — questions & answers

What charges is Richard Heart facing?

Specific charges have not been disclosed, but the arrest follows an INTERPOL Red Notice requested by Finland.

How much was seized during the arrest?

Turkish authorities seized $7.15 million in assets, including cash, cryptocurrency wallets, luxury goods, and weapons.

What is the status of the investigation?

The investigation is ongoing, with Turkish authorities examining the seized evidence.

Which outlets reported this story?

This is an original TLT brief that synthesises reporting from TronWeekly. It is not a copy of any one article — follow the source links above for the original reporting.

TLT Newsdesk Data-stamped

TLT's newsdesk writes original briefs by synthesising coverage from across the crypto press — 50+ outlets including CoinDesk, The Block, Decrypt and Cointelegraph — cross-checking the figures they report — and verifying them against on-chain data from DeFiLlama and mempool.space — plus live market context (CoinGecko, Binance). We summarise and link to every source; we never reproduce full articles. Read our editorial standards and how we use AI. Not financial advice.

Market data verified against CoinGecko & Binance · October 18, 2026 ⛓ Timestamped at Bitcoin block #971,954 sha256:c009d22511536684
Based on reporting by TronWeekly — this is an original TLT summary with live market data, not the original article.TronWeekly · Oct 18 06:28 ↗

Original summary — not financial advice. This is an original TLT brief that summarises a development reported elsewhere and adds live market data for context; it is not the original article and reproduces no part of it. Follow the source link above for full details. Crypto is volatile and high-risk — always do your own research.