According to local media reports, Faruk Fatih Ozer, founder of the now defunct Thodex exchange, was found dead in his prison cell while serving his sentence in Turkey. The stock exchange’s former CEO was sentenced to 11,196 years in prison in 2023 for various financial crimes.
Thodex CEO may have committed suicide: Turkish minister
On Saturday, November 1, Bloomberg reported that Ozer died in his prison cell at the F-Type High Security Closed Prison in the western Turkish city of Tekirdag. Citing Turkish broadcaster TRT, Bloomberg revealed that authorities are investigating the founder’s death, focusing on the possibility of suicide.
Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said in a statement:
An investigation into this matter has been opened and is ongoing. The exact cause of death will be determined based on the investigation. But currently, initial findings indicate it was a suicide.
Ozer was found hanging in the bathroom of his single prison cell, prompting speculation about the cause of death as suicide. However, Tekirdag F-Type High Security Closed Prison has been called out in the past by some human rights organizations for its use of solitary confinement and isolation of small groups.
Ozer, who founded the cryptocurrency exchange Thodex in 2017, fled to Albania following the abrupt collapse of his company in 2021. Following his extradition from Albania in 2022, the former crypto CEO, along with his two siblings, was found guilty by an Istanbul court of several crimes, including serious fraud, money laundering and running a criminal organization.
Ozer revealed in a statement released shortly after Thodex’s implosion that he had considered surrendering to the police or committing suicide. However, the former stock exchange boss chose to flee Turkey and go to Albania to “stay alive and fight, work and pay back my debts.”
In the first case against Ozer, the prosecutor estimated the total losses suffered by investors at approximately $24 million following the collapse of Thodex. However, Turkish media estimated the figures at $2 billion, while a data analytics company reported a loss of $2.6 billion.
Total Crypto Market Cap at $3.66 Trillion
At the time of writing, the total cryptocurrency market capitalization is approximately $3.66 trillion, reflecting an increase of 0.39% in the past 24 hours. However, a broader look shows that the market is on a downward trend and is down almost 10% in the past month.
The crypto total market cap on the daily timeframe | Source: TOTAL chart on TradingView
Featured image from Getty, chart from TradingView
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