Death of Faruk Fatih Ozer
Faruk Fatih Ozer, the 31-year-old ex-CEO of the now-defunct cryptocurrency platform Thodex, was discovered deceased in his cell at a prison in Tekirdag, Turkey. The demise was reported by TRT, the state broadcaster, on Saturday, and authorities are probing the circumstances of his death, giving particular attention to the potential for suicide.
Background on Thodex
Ozer was serving a staggering prison sentence of over 11,000 years for a slew of offenses, including orchestrating fraud and heading a criminal organization, related to the collapse of Thodex in 2021. He originally founded Thodex in Istanbul back in 2017 despite dropping out of high school. Through rapid growth, the exchange became one of the most notable in Turkey, boasting nearly 400,000 users and uniquely offering Bitcoin ATM services across the country.
Marketing Initiatives and Collapse
Thodex launched its last marketing initiative between March 15 and April 15, 2021, during which new users were enticed with free Dogecoin, culminating in the distribution of approximately 4 million tokens. This promotion was strategically timed to coincide with “Dogeday” on April 20, 2021, a day when Dogecoin’s value soared by 20%. However, on the same day, customers reported significant transactional issues, which Thodex attributed to a cyberattack. By the next day, trading was entirely suspended, leaving users unable to access their funds.
Financial Impact and Legal Consequences
While initial legal assessments indicated losses around $24 million, media sources in Turkey suggested that actual losses could reach a staggering $2 billion, with some analyses by blockchain firms estimating it at approximately $2.6 billion. Following the collapse, Ozer fled to Albania, prompting the issuance of an Interpol red notice for his arrest in April 2021. He was finally captured in Albania on August 30, 2022, and following an Albanian court ruling, was extradited back to Turkey in April 2023, where he was immediately taken into custody.
Conviction and Sentencing
On September 7, 2023, a court in Istanbul found Ozer guilty on multiple counts, including aggravated fraud, money laundering, and organized crime. He faced a cumulative sentence of 11,196 years, 10 months, and 15 days, along with a hefty fine of 135 million Turkish liras.
