The world's largest international police organization, Interpol, has issued a "Red Notice" for Hex founder Richard Schueler, also known as Richard Heart, on charges of tax fraud and assault.
A Red Notice is a global request for law enforcement agencies to locate and provisionally arrest a person — with the Finnish authorities seeking Schueler's arrest. However, a Red Notice is not an international arrest warrant.
Schueler has also been listed among Europe's most wanted fugitives, where these allegations are detailed further. It alleges that Schueler "assaulted a 16-year-old victim by grabbing their hair, pulling them into a stairwell, and pushing the victim to the ground."
Arrest warrant issued for Schueler 3 months ago
Heart is suspected of tax evasion from June 2, 2020, to April 2, 2024.
The Red Notice was issued just three months after an initial provisional arrest warrant was issued for Schueler on September 13, according to Finnish public broadcaster Yle.
On September 18, TinTucBitcoin reported that Helsinki police detective Harri Saaristola told Yle that Heart's income reports did not match the tax service's estimates.
Schueler has not yet publicly commented on the Red Notice. However, he has maintained online activity and made comments that appear to allude to the issue.
"If the haters really want to take me down, they could donate more than the $27 million I've made for medical research," Schueler said in a post on X.
Schueler remains at the center of an SEC lawsuit
"Nothing angers the haters more than success. Every time they think of you, it reminds them that they haven't even done half of what you're capable of," he said.
Meanwhile, Schueler remains embroiled in a lawsuit with U.S. regulators over allegations of unregistered issuance of three Cryptoassets, Hex, PulseChain (PLS), and PulseX (PSLX).
On August 22, Heart requested to dismiss the $1 billion lawsuit, but the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission pushed back, arguing they have ample authority to bring the case against Heart.
The SEC alleges Heart raised over $1 billion through "the unregistered offer and sale of Cryptoasset securities," According to the complaint, Heart advertised these Bits "as a path to dazzling wealth for investors."
TinTucBitcoin reached out to Richard Schueler for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.