Richard Heart detained in Istanbul on Interpol red notice for alleged tax fraud

Turkish authorities and intelligence officers detained HEX and PulseChain founder Richard Heart in an early-morning raid in Istanbul on October 14, 2026. Heart was taken into custody on an Interpol Red Notice issued at Finland's request over alleged aggravated tax fraud involving hundreds of millions of euros. Police seized millions in cash, dozens of Rolex watches, firearms, and hardware. Following the arrest, Heart's crypto tokens PLS, HEX, and PLSX suffered steep market crashes of up to 50%.

Detention of Richard Heart in Istanbul

• ▪Richard Heart was taken into custody alongside his wife, identified in reports as A.K., during an early-morning police raid following physical and technical surveillance
• ▪Turkish police and the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) detained HEX and PulseChain founder Richard Heart, legal name Richard James Schueler, in Istanbul's Beşiktaş district on October 14, 2026

Assets seized during Istanbul raid

• ▪Turkish police seized three handguns, four rifles, seven magazines, and 1,360 rounds of ammunition during the arrest of Richard Heart
• ▪Raid reports indicate law enforcement officers seized two drones alongside firearms and ammunition from the Beşiktaş residence where Richard Heart was detained
• ▪Reports from the raid in Beşiktaş that led to Richard Heart's detention listed up to 64 confiscated luxury watches, including 53 Rolexes and 11 Patek Philippe pieces
• ▪Turkish law enforcement seized millions of dollars in cash alongside gold jewelry, laptops, desktop computers, graphics cards, and crypto cold storage wallets from Richard Heart's Istanbul residence

Cryptocurrency price drops following arrest

• ▪The PulseX (PLSX) token plunged 31% to trade at $0.055 amid panic selling after Richard Heart's arrest
• ▪The HEX cryptocurrency fell between 25% and 45% following reports of Richard Heart's arrest in Istanbul
• ▪Following news of Richard Heart's detention on October 14, 2026, the PulseChain (PLS) token dropped 35% to 50% in value

Finnish legal proceedings and investigation

• ▪Interpol issued a Red Notice for Richard Heart in December 2024 at the request of Finland regarding allegations of aggravated tax fraud involving hundreds of millions of euros
• ▪Finnish police seized approximately 20 luxury watches valued at $2.6 million from a residence in Espoo in early 2025 during their investigation into Richard Heart
• ▪A Finnish court ordered Richard Heart held in custody in absentia on Sept. 13, in connection with allegations of tax evasion and a 2021 assault on a 16-year-old

Turkish fraud allegations

• ▪Richard Heart allegedly attempted to obfuscate $500 million in cryptocurrency through crypto mixer transactions, potentially funding his luxurious residence in Istanbul
• ▪Turkish prosecutors allege Richard Heart established an Istanbul-based fraud network operating through shell companies in the United States, Finland, and Spain

SEC lawsuit and dismissal

• ▪The SEC sued Richard Heart in July 2023 for raising over $1 billion through unregistered crypto offerings and allegedly misusing $12 million on luxury goods
• ▪Judge Carol Bagley Amon of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York dismissed the SEC's civil suit against Richard Heart in February 2025 due to lack of personal jurisdiction