A US citizen sought by Interpol over suspected cryptocurrency fraud involving approximately $1 billion in the US and Finland has been arrested in Türkiye's Istanbul city.

The suspect, identified as Richard James Schueler, was detained on October 14 in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district under an Interpol Red Notice, according to TRT Haber.

The operation was coordinated by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, with the participation of police intelligence and financial crimes units and support from Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MİT). Schueler’s wife and three personal bodyguards were also detained.

As part of the investigation, police officers searched 15 locations across the Beşiktaş, Üsküdar and Sarıyer districts.

Police officers seized $7.15 million in cash, 160,000 Turkish liras and six hardware cryptocurrency wallets. The operation also resulted in the confiscation of 29 smartphones, 23 computers and laptops, 19 solid-state drives, 46 USB storage devices and 19 graphics cards.

Moreover, police officers additionally discovered approximately 300 designer handbags, 100 pairs of shoes, 136 pairs of glasses, 28 wristwatches and 97 pieces of jewelry.

Four rifles, three unregistered pistols and 1,400 rounds of ammunition were also seized during the searches.