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Chinese Police Shut down Illegal Bitcoin Mining Farm

Last Updated March 4, 2021 4:53 PM
Francisco Memoria
Last Updated March 4, 2021 4:53 PM

According to Chinese publisher Xin’an Evening, Chinese police took down an illegal bitcoin mining farm in Bengbu, Anhui Province. The mining farm was using electric power from a local electric power company’s energy source to fund their operations and acquire bitcoin, as a total of 50 ASIC miners were seized.

In China, power is seen as a state-owned property. A family was running the illegal bitcoin farm and, according to the Xin’an Evening, made enough money to finance up to 8 years of future expenses they could’ve had.

The family was arrested after inspectors found out they were the cause of an electricity consumption surge. The electric power company reportedly lost over $140 a day for over 6 months.

A Cable Gave Them Away

The local electric power company reportedly experienced a loss rate of roughly 5%, but since May 2016 it experienced a loss rate of 97%. As such, it launched an investigation in order to determine what caused the power surge. After searching every local household, it seemed nothing was out of the ordinary.

At the end of November, inspectors discovered a white cable attached to a starter box in a building. The cable led to an apartment. The apartment’s windows had a dark curtain in front of them, and bricks in front of the door so no one could see inside. Yet, the sound of machines operating wasn’t concealed, so the apartment was broken into.

Inside, inspectors found the 50 ASIC miners at work. The power company did the math and, according to them, each one of the miners was consuming 1000w/h. That led to a total of 1224 KW a day, leading to a $140 daily loss.

The family allegedly managed to make a profit of over $27.000 over the past six months. Three other bitcoin mining sites were cracked down this year, leading to the arrest of 77 miners.

It’s still unclear whether or not the family will have to compensate the power company for its losses.

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