This incident took place in the United Kingdom. Police raided a place looking for a cannabis farm, but turns out that it is an illegal bitcoin mine.
According to West Midlands Police, it uncovered a cryptocurrency ‘mine’ that was stealing thousands of pounds worth of electricity from the mains supply. This incident took place at a Black Country industrial unit in Birmingham.
The raid was conducted after the police received an intelligence suggesting it was being used as a cannabis farm. Officers forced entry to the premises in Great Bridge Industrial Estate, Sandwell, stated West Midlands Police.
The police stated that the department heard a lot of “people were visiting the unit at different times of day, lots of wiring and ventilation ducts were visible, and a police drone picked up a considerable heat source from above.” These are usually signs of a classic cannabis factory.
The police officers found that the industrial units had a huge bank of around 100 computer units as part of a Bitcoin mining operation. This equipment has now been seized.
Enquiries with Western Power, the electricity distribution network operator for the Midlands, revealed the electric supply had been bypassed and thousands of pounds worth had been stolen to power the ‘mine’.
Sandwell Police Sergeant Jennifer Griffin, said, “It’s certainly not what we were expecting! It had all the hallmarks of a cannabis cultivation set-up and I believe it’s only the second such crypto mine we’ve encountered in the West Midlands.”
She added that mining for cryptocurrency is not itself illegal but clearly abstracting electricity from the mains supply to power it is. “We’ve seized the equipment and will be looking into permanently seizing it under the Proceeds of Crime Act. No-one was at the unit at the time of the warrant and no arrests have been made – but we’ll be making enquiries with the unit’s owner.”
The warrant was one of almost 50 executed as part of County Lines Intensification Week (17-23 May) which led to 84 arrests, significant drug seizures and the recovery of weapons including a sawn-off shotgun and a blank firing pistol converted to discharge live rounds.
By mining, miners can access cryptocurrency without having to put down money for it.
