Seventeen devices illegally mined Bitcoin at Tajikistan kindergarten

Four residents of Tajikistan have been detained for illegal connection to power grids to mine Bitcoin and for tax evasion. According to the local desk [simple_tooltip content=’The media has been recognised as a foreign agent by the decision of the Russian authorities’]”Radio Liberty”[/simple_tooltip]. The operations took place last year, but they became known only now.

In a kindergarten in the city of Istaravshan, law enforcement officers seized 17 ASIC miners. Each device generated cryptocurrency daily worth about $40. The farm belonged to one of the local entrepreneurs. Later, in the basement of his house, 34 more mining units were found.

A raid in the city of Jabbor uncovered 179 ASIC miners. According to the tax authorities, the device owners earned up to 520 somoni per day (over $45), avoiding tax payments.

Representatives of the agency did not specify what charges the detained individuals face — whether for electricity theft or for tax evasion — but noted that any entrepreneur must first obtain a license to engage in a particular activity, registering as a taxpayer.

Cryptocurrencies are not governed by a legal regime in Tajikistan, and the National Bank provides no clarifications on the nature of digital assets.

Investigations into criminal cases against the four detainees are ongoing. Energy-regulatory authorities said that one of the miners spent electricity worth more than 1,000,000 somoni (nearly $88,000) over 11 months.

ForkLog previously reported that among Russian regions, Dagestan leads in the number of illegal mining farms. The damage from miners’ activity is estimated at 730,000 rubles.

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