Richard Heart caught with his pants down during arrest, report

Embarrassing pictures of Hex founder Richard Heart sitting partially naked in an armchair have been shared by Turkish news outlet TGRT Haber as part of its reporting on a police operation that saw Heart arrested and $7 million siezed.

Heart, real name Richard James Schueler, was arrested last week in Istanbul in an operation coordinated by Turkey’s security agency (MİT), Istanbul’s Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Financial Crimes Division, and Interpol.

During a series of raids across 15 locations in Beşiktaş, police also siezed six physical crypto wallets, 300 designer bags, 100 pieces of jewellery, four rifles, three pistols, and 1,400 rounds of ammunition.

Heart’s alleged wife, Alina Kara, and three bodyguards were also arrested.

It’s unclear exactly when the embarrassing photo was taken, but judging by the shocked look on his face, and the police reporting, it seems to have been taken mid police raid.

Turkey’s Minister of Justice Akın Gürlek said on Saturday, “Turkey will not be a refuge for transnational crimes and fugitive suspects!” and added that Heart’s judicial proceedings are still ongoing.

Interpol and Finland want Richard Heart

An Interpol Red Notice on behalf of Finland was posted against Heart in December 2024 for alleged aggravated tax fraud involving hundreds of millions of euros in unpaid tax.

In 2023, the SEC also accused Heart of selling over $1 billion in unregistered securities, and misappropriating millions of dollars from his Hex, PulseChain, and PulseX crypto projects.

This case was referred to in Gürlek’s post, but the SEC dropped its case in 2025 after failing to establish legal jurisdiction.