Faruk Fatih Ozer – “Boss” of Thodex virtual currency exchange died in a Turkish prison, ending the tragedy behind the global shocking scam.
Faruk Fatih Ozer, founder and former CEO of the Thodex cryptocurrency exchange – once a symbol of Türkiye’s “tech billionaire dream” – has been found dead in his cell at Tekirdağ F-Type prison, according to local media reports. Ozer was serving a sentence of more than 11,000 years in prison for aggravated fraud, money laundering and leading a criminal organization, after Thodex collapsed in 2021, causing more than 400,000 investors to lose a total of $2.6 billion.
According to initial information, Ozer was found hanged in the bathroom of his solitary cell. Turkish Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç confirmed that an investigation had been opened and said: “The official cause of death will be determined after the autopsy is completed, but at present, initial signs point to suicide.”
From “young genius” to financial criminal sentenced to more than 11,000 years in prison
Faruk Fatih Ozer was once hailed as the “Elon Musk of Türkiye” when he founded Thodex in 2017 – a time when the global cryptocurrency market was booming. In just a few years, the exchange attracted hundreds of thousands of domestic users, thanks to the promise of “huge profits” and attractive rewards programs.
However, in April 2021, Thodex suddenly stopped operating, the website was closed, millions of dollars of user money "evaporated". Ozer, then only 27 years old, fled Turkey to Albania, leaving behind a collapsed "cryptocurrency empire" and hundreds of thousands of investors in despair.
In 2022, after more than a year of international manhunt, Ozer was arrested in Albania while trying to use false documents. He was extradited to Turkey and faces 356 criminal charges. In September 2023, an Istanbul court sentenced Ozer to a record 11,196 years in prison, along with his brother and sister.
