Allegations of pulling an exit scam have been raised against Thodex, which is a Turkish cryptocurrency exchange having almost 400,000 users. There are also allegations that the even the Chief Executive Officer of the purported sham crypto exchange has fled Turkey. The CEO has allegedly robbed the users of $2 billion of their funds. There is an arrest warrant with the police for the CEO and in connection to the case, a handful of people have even been detained.
Reportedly, earlier this week Thodex, a cryptocurrency exchange in Turkey went offline and its Chief Executive Officer also was nowhere to be found. This sudden chain of events has left thousands of investors worried about their funds being stolen.
None of the users are able to access their accounts and in fact, are getting messages such as temporarily closed. The site explains that the glitch is due to an abnormal fluctuation in the company accounts, however, there are no details given.
According to Turkish local media, the CEO who had vanished suddenly has now been reported as having fled the country with the funds. A man leaving Istanbul Airport was clicked by Demiroren News Agency, who they claim is the executive namely Faruk Faith Ozer. Going by the reports Ozer has fled for Albania.
An international arrest warrant has been issued by the Turkish authorities against Ozer as reported by a state-run news agency, Anadolu Agency. Turkey is a member of the International Criminal Police Commission – Interpol, therefore the Interpol issued a red warrant or notice for the CEO of Thodex. Since Albania too is a member of Interpol, therefore, it is entitled to receive red notice requests from Interpol.
In order to seek Ozer’s arrest, the Turkish interior minister and police chief talked to their Albanian equivalents, according to Turkish police headquarters.
Ever since the platform went down, users have filed multiple complaints against the crypto exchange that they have been conned too. The users cannot access their accounts, leaving them worried that their savings are lost forever and would never be retrieved.
According to a criminal complaint filed by a lawyer, Thodex had 400,000 users out of which active users amounted to 390,000. In a statement purportedly by Ozer, he has clarified that only 30,000 investors were affected by the glitch. He further stated that the rumors about losses amounting to $2 billion also had no basis whatsoever.
In a police search of Thodex’s office in Istanbul, the police confiscated the available materials in the office. Additionally, it has also issued arrest warrants against seventy-eight suspects, while detaining sixty-two people in eight cities with respect to the case.
In an attempt to protect their savings, Turkish investors have taken a liking to crypto investments. Turks see the digital tokens as a good store of value therefore, lately, it has gained quite a popularity in the country.
