An ex-facilities worker in the U.S. state of Massachusetts is charged with stealing electricity worth $18,000 to power 11 miners in a school’s crawl space.
- An ex-facilities worker in Massachusetts set up a clandestine cryptocurrency mining operation inside the crawl space of the school.
- In many countries, unscrupulous bitcoin miners have attempted to drain the network’s power.
Media Reports
A former facilities worker suspected of establishing a hidden bitcoin mining business inside the crawl space of a Massachusetts school is now in arrest after skipping a scheduled court appearance to answer to charges. Nadeem Nahas was expected to appear in court on February 23 for expenses related to allegedly destroying a school and using energy without permission, according to media reports.
When someone misses a court date or refuses to follow a court order, a court may issue a default warrant, which gives police the right to detain the offender. To power his cryptocurrency mining operation in 2021, between April 28 and December 14, Nahas, rumored to have formerly worked in the town of Cohasset, Massachusetts, in the United States, is accused of stealing electricity worth nearly $18,000.
After Cohasset’s facilities director saw computers, wiring, and ductwork that seemed out of place, given that they were in a crawl space next to the school’s boiler room, the director of facilities first alerted local authorities about the operation in December 2021. There were eleven computers, and Nahas was identified as a suspect following a three-month inquiry. In March, Nahas submitted his resignation letter to the town of Cohasset.
Past Incidents
No one has ever been accused of stealing energy to mine cryptocurrencies. Therefore this is something that has been introduced previously.
Malaysian Miners
Following their confiscation for operating illegally in July 2021, Malaysian authorities destroyed Bitcoin mining equipment valued at more than $1.2 million. According to reports, the rigs were seized from Malaysian citizens allegedly trying to mine bitcoin illegally between February and April using stolen electricity. Officials reported that three local homes had been burned this year because of unauthorized Bitcoin mining, and the Sarawak Electricity firm suffered a $2 million loss.
It’s unknown why Malaysian authorities destroyed the miners entirely rather than trying to salvage some value from the parts. Officers have been conducting raids on illegal cryptocurrency mining operations in Iran, Turkey, and other nations where mining has been prohibited or limited for some time. These searches frequently end in arrests, penalties, and the seizure of the mining rigs.
Bulgarian Miners
Bulgarian authorities detained two guys for stealing over $1.5 million of power to run two crypto-mining farms. Two individuals have reportedly been apprehended concerning the theft of $1.5 million in energy used for Bitcoin mining in the small town of Kyustendil, according to a report from Bulgaria Today published on August 14.
Not Unique to Europe
As more people become aware of the value of tokens, dishonest crypto miners have sought to drain power from the network in various locations. One of the biggest thefts ever was said to have taken place in China in July 2019 when 22 people were apprehended for allegedly running an unauthorized crypto-mining operation utilizing $3 million in stolen electricity. Police seized four thousand mining rigs at nine separate firms.
Russian authorities have also tried to act against Bitcoin miners who steal electricity. Police detained a 30-year-old miner in June for suspicion of stealing nearly $500,000 worth of electricity from the public power grid. In a related instance involving the theft of $200,000 worth of electricity per month to power cryptocurrency mining, another defendant and his nine alleged accomplices were detained in March.
