Authorities Seize Over 1500 Crypto Mining Rigs In Dagestan Crackdown – In Dagestan, law enforcement as well as other authorities shut down two illegal crypto farms, seizing over 1,500 mining devices. Regular raids against such facilities are carried out by government agencies in the republic, which is regarded as one of Russia’s centers of underground coin minting.
According to the Tass news agency, officers from Dagestan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Federal Security Service discovered a big crypto mining farm in Makhachkala, the Russian republic’s capital. According to a press release, law enforcement authorities seized 1,476 devices that produce digital currencies.
Also Read: Bank of Spain Governor Highlights Need for Fast Regulation in Defi and Crypto
The owners of the unlawful operation have also been giving services to other miners, including building mining rigs, attaching them to the electrical grid, and providing security, according to the agency. Experts are currently attempting to determine the market value of the seized mining equipment, as well as the quantity of electricity utilized.
Law enforcement officers who seized the crypto farm also stated that they are gathering evidence to prosecute the operators under Part 2 of Art. 171 of the Russian Federation’s Criminal Code, “Illegal entrepreneurship,” and Part 2 of Art. 165, “Property damage caused by fraud or abuse of trust.”
Dagestan, along with Russian regions like Krasnoyarsk Krai and Irkutsk Oblast which have low electricity costs, has become a hotspot for illicit and home crypto mining in recent years. As a result, they have experienced blackouts as a result of power outages, particularly in residential areas in which the electrical networks were not prepared to accommodate the increased loads.
In another case, Rosseti Severniy Kavkaz, the republic’s power grid operator and distributor, recently discovered 95 rigs minting cryptocurrency at a Mahachkala Vodokanal plant. At the Vuzovskoe Ozero pumping station, the gear was put in a metal container.
The crypto farm had a 260 kW power capacity, and its unlawful electricity usage exceeded 4.5 million kWh, costing over 26 million rubles ($400,000). According to Rosseti’s announcement, the farm was built by a resident of Dagestan’s capital who collaborated with water utility staff.
Authorities in Moscow have been working to legalize crypto mining as a corporate activity, with Russia having some benefits like cheap energy and suitable weather. The State Duma is presently considering a new measure that would accomplish this. Meanwhile, the Russian anti-monopoly agency has proposed raising electricity tariffs for individuals mining at home in an effort to reduce mining with household electricity.
