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Faruk Fatih Özer

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Faruk Fatih Özer (born 1993) is a Turkish criminal, former cryptocurrency trader, and former fugitive.

He founded Thodex exchange, before its collapse in 2021. In September 2023, Özer was sentenced to 11,196 years in prison for crimes including fraud.[1]

Biography

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Faruk Fatih Ozer was born 1993 or 1994[2] and has two siblings, a sister, Serap, and a brother, Guven.[3][4]

He dropped out of high school[5] before founding the cryptocurrency exchange Thodex in Istanbul[6] in 2017.[2] Thodex became one of Turkey's biggest crypto exchanges[2] and Ozer became a celebrity in Turkey, photographed associating with politicians including Mevlut Cavusoglu and Suleyman Soylu.[7]

Thodex collapsed in April 2021.[2] Ozer shut down his social media profiles[8] and flew to Albania on April 20, 2021.[9] Turkish authorities launched an investigation into the company on April 22[9] before accusing it of defrauding 390,000 investors out of approximately US$2 billion.[8] Ozer rejected the fraud allegation and said his company had temporarily closed its trading platform to investigate a cyber attack.[8]

An Interpol international arrest warrant was issued for Ozer in April 2021,[6] leading to his arrest in Albania on August 30, 2022.[10][11] He was extradited to Turkey in April 2023.[12]

At an Istanbul court, on September 7, 2023,[12] Ozer was fined 135 million Turkish liras (approximately US$5 million) and sentenced to 11,196 years in prison after being found guilty of various charges including fraud.[12] His brother and sister were among the 20 other accused,[13] and were both issued with the same sentences.[13][5][3] Prosecutors state that the crimes had 2,027 victims.[2][14]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Crypto boss sentenced to more than 11,000 years in prison". The Seattle Times. 2023-09-09. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Thodex cryptocurrency boss jailed for 11,196 years in Turkey for fraud". BBC News. 2023-09-08. Archived from the original on 2023-09-08. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  3. ^ a b "Turkish crypto boss sentenced to 11,196 years in jail". Radio France Internationale. 2023-09-08. Archived from the original on 2023-09-08. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  4. ^ Scatena, Jenna. "He Emptied an Entire Crypto Exchange Onto a Thumb Drive. Then He Disappeared". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2024-04-03.
  5. ^ a b Bilgic, Taylan (2023-09-08). "Boss of Failed Crypto Exchange Gets 11,000-Year Sentence". Bloomberg.com. Archived from the original on 2023-09-08. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  6. ^ a b "Albania extradites fugitive crypto boss - Türkiye News". Hürriyet Daily News. 2023-04-20. Archived from the original on 2023-04-25. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  7. ^ "Turkish Crypto boss sentenced to over 11,000 years in jail over money laundering". Middle East Eye. 8 September 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-09-08. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  8. ^ a b c "Turkey probes cryptocurrency exchange for possible $2B fraud". AP News. 2021-04-22. Archived from the original on 2022-10-15. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  9. ^ a b "Turkish crypto founder flees with reported $2 bln - Latest News". Hürriyet Daily News. 2021-04-22. Archived from the original on 2023-05-28. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  10. ^ "Thodex'in kurucusu Faruk Fatih Özer tutuklanarak cezaevine gönderildi". BBC News Türkçe (in Turkish). 2023-04-23. Archived from the original on 2023-05-29. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  11. ^ "Turkish cryptocurrency boss arrested in Albania - Türkiye News". Hürriyet Daily News. 2022-08-30. Archived from the original on 2022-08-31. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  12. ^ a b c "Crypto boss sentenced to over 11,000 years - Türkiye News". Hürriyet Daily News. 2023-09-08. Archived from the original on 2023-09-08. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  13. ^ a b Shepherd, Büşra (7 September 2023). "Thodex'in kurucusu Faruk Fatih Özer'in dolandırıcılık davasında karar". Anadolu Agency (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 2023-09-07. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
  14. ^ Demirer, İpek Buse (2023-10-03). "Turkish Cryptocurrency Boss Sentenced to 11,196 Years for Massive Fraud". Kurucuk & Associates. Retrieved 2024-05-06.


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