Hex founder Richard Heart arrested in Istanbul on Finnish Interpol notice, reports say

Richard Heart, the founder of Hex, PulseChain and PulseX, has been arrested in Istanbul, Turkish media reported. CoinDesk, citing local outlets including Daily Sabah, says Turkish police and intelligence officers carried out the operation on Wednesday, 14 October.

What was reported

• Heart, whose legal name is Richard James Schueler, was taken into custody together with his wife at a property in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district.
• Local reports say officers seized about $4 million in cash, 64 luxury watches, firearms and electronic devices. Police had not confirmed those figures at the time of writing.
• The arrest is linked to an Interpol Red Notice issued over allegations of tax fraud and assault in Finland.

Reports of Heart being detained first circulated on Wednesday afternoon; Thursday’s coverage describes a formal arrest.

A long legal history

Heart has been a controversial figure in crypto for years. In 2023 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sued him and three of his projects, alleging they raised more than $1 billion through unregistered securities offerings and that at least $12 million of investor money was misused.

That case did not last. In 2025 a U.S. judge threw out the complaint for lack of jurisdiction, finding the projects had not specifically targeted American investors, and the SEC dropped the matter. The Finnish allegations are a separate proceeding.

What happens next

It is not yet clear whether Finland will seek Heart’s extradition from Turkey or what charges he will formally face. Neither Heart nor his representatives had publicly commented on the arrest when this article was published. Holders of HEX, PLS or PLSX tokens should keep in mind that these networks run independently of their founder’s legal status, although headlines like this often move thinly traded tokens.

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