In the Penza region, on the grounds of a farming cooperative, a crypto-mining farm was found, whose owners are suspected of large-scale electricity theft. The local police press service reports.
Authorities detained seven local residents, including specialists in power grids and computer equipment.
Preliminarily, it was established that they connected mining devices to the electrical network bypassing metering devices.
“To conceal illegal energy consumption, the criminals disabled equipment in the distribution device of the transformer substation and on the reinforced concrete support of the high-voltage line,” the agency said.
According to energy officials, in two months of operation the farm consumed more than 3 million kWh of electricity, worth over 500,000 rubles.
A criminal case has been opened against the suspects for causing property damage.
Earlier ForkLog reported that in Kostroma Oblast illegal electricity consumption for mining for 3 million rubles was detected.