Turkey’s Justice Minister Akın Gürlek confirmed on October 17 that U.S. citizen Richard James Schueler, known as Richard Heart, was detained in Istanbul on October 14 under an Interpol Red Notice. Turkish authorities said searches linked to the case yielded $7.15 million, 160,000 Turkish lira and six cold wallets, while judicial proceedings and examinations of the seized material continue.
Interpol Red Notice detention in Istanbul
The detention is now a documented cross-border enforcement action following the Justice Ministry’s announcement. In its statement, the ministry said Heart’s wife and three people described as alleged bodyguards were also detained.
The announcement left the status of the other detainees and the contents of the cold wallets unspecified. A Red Notice, meanwhile, is an Interpol alert used to request that law-enforcement authorities locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender or similar legal action, rather than an international arrest warrant itself.
Cash, cold wallets and weapons found in searches
Authorities said searches at 15 addresses produced $7.15 million, 160,000 Turkish lira and six cold wallets, according to the Türkiye Ministry of Justice. The statement gave no values or asset descriptions for the wallets.
The Block reported that the inventory also contained four long-barreled rifles, three unlicensed pistols, 1,400 rounds of ammunition, luxury goods and electronic devices; these were separate from the ministry’s cash and cold-wallet figures.
Alleged $1 billion fraud case remains under examination
Turkish officials linked the detention to allegations of approximately $1 billion in crypto-asset fraud involving the United States and Finland.
Anadolu Agency reported that the judicial process and examination of items seized in the searches were ongoing.
The allegation had not been established in court based on the information released so far. Turkish authorities had not announced a hearing date or timetable for the continuing examination.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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