Thodex Founder Faruk Fatih Ozer Found Dead in Turkish Prison — Once Faced 11,000-Year Sentence
In a shocking development, Faruk Fatih Ozer, the disgraced founder and former CEO of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange Thodex, has been found dead in his prison cell in the western Turkish city of Tekirdağ, according to a report by state broadcaster TRT. Authorities have launched a full investigation into his death, with early indications suggesting possible suicide.
Ozer, who had once been hailed as a young tech prodigy in Turkey’s crypto boom, was serving an astonishing 11,196-year prison sentence for a series of financial crimes, including fraud, money laundering, and leading a criminal organization.
From Crypto Visionary to Convicted Fraudster
Ozer founded Thodex in 2017 when he was just in his early 20s. The exchange quickly gained popularity in Turkey as cryptocurrency investments soared amid the country’s economic instability and high inflation. However, Thodex abruptly halted trading in 2021, locking users out of their accounts and leaving thousands unable to access their funds.
Soon after the platform’s collapse, Ozer fled Turkey to Albania, reportedly carrying with him a substantial portion of investors’ assets. His disappearance sparked a massive international manhunt that captured global attention.
After nearly a year on the run, Ozer was arrested in Albania in 2022. Following lengthy extradition proceedings, he was returned to Turkey, where a court found him guilty on multiple charges.
Billions Lost in One of Crypto’s Biggest Scandals
While Turkish prosecutors initially estimated investor losses from the Thodex collapse at $24 million, later reports suggested a far higher figure. Some Turkish media outlets placed the losses at around $2 billion, while blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis estimated the total at $2.6 billion, ranking it among the largest crypto exchange collapses in history.
Thousands of Turkish investors, many of whom had invested their life savings into Thodex, were left devastated. The case also prompted the Turkish government to strengthen its regulations around cryptocurrency trading and digital assets.
An Ongoing Investigation
Officials have not yet released a formal cause of death, but TRT reported that suicide is being treated as a primary line of inquiry. Ozer’s sudden death adds a grim twist to a scandal that had already shaken Turkey’s financial and crypto sectors.
The incident has once again brought attention to the dark side of the global crypto industry, where unregulated exchanges and unchecked hype have led to multiple high-profile collapses, erasing billions in investor wealth.