2,700 Crypto Rigs Seized: Russia Launches Biggest Mining Raid Of The Year
According to studies, Russian police have seized round 2,700 crypto mining tools from a website in St. Petersburg after a months-long probe into unusually low meter readings.
The haul included banks of machines, followers and different cooling gear, and the authorities say additionally they took away two transformers.
Large Crypto Mining Rigs Seizure In St. Petersburg
Investigators say the operation began after power inspectors observed inconsistencies between recorded meter figures and precise energy use.
The website had been connected to the grid since March 2018. It ran, in keeping with officers, till August 2025. Police say three unnamed St. Petersburg residents had initially signed a contract to attach a industrial property to the grid greater than seven years in the past.
Officers launched video of the raid on a ministry Telegram channel. The footage exhibits police forcing open locked containers and pushing a person to the ground as they searched the premises.
In one container, rows of lively machines could possibly be seen, with followers operating and cooling techniques in place. Other rooms held tons of extra rigs.
Meter Tampering And Charges
Based on studies from the Interior Ministry, investigators consider the suspects used technical data of the facility grid to change meter readings so the utility would present a lot decrease consumption than was truly used.
The suspects behind the unlawful crypto mining rig operation have been positioned in custody and charged with inflicting “property injury by deception or abuse of belief,” prosecutors mentioned.
The ministry has not launched an estimate of how a lot electrical energy was taken or the monetary worth of the theft. Officials additionally didn’t say which digital cash have been being mined on the website. Police added they’re nonetheless searching for potential accomplices linked to the operation.
Smaller Networks Found In Other Regions
This seizure follows comparable discoveries throughout Russia and territories underneath Moscow’s management. In mid-September, authorities uncovered an unlawful cluster in what Moscow calls the Donetsk People’s Republic the place operators had related 25 rigs on to the grid, bypassing meters. Officials reported injury estimated at 14 million rubles ($170,633) for that community.
In different areas, hidden setups have appeared underground or inside vehicles and vans. Regions talked about by officers embody Dagestan, components of the North Caucasus and Southern Siberia — locations the place low-cost or poorly monitored energy has typically attracted clandestine miners.
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