Man arrested in Rio de Janeiro for mining crypto with stolen electricity

Rio de Janeiro Police announcement in Portuguese: https://www.policiacivil.rj.gov.br/news/12392

Rio de Janeiro Police arrest criminal for stealing electricity to mine cryptocurrencies on Ilha do Governador

Civil police officers from the 37th Precinct (Ilha do Governador neighbourhood) arrested a criminal this Thursday (September 4th) for stealing electricity to maintain an illegal cryptocurrency mining structure inside a residence. The man was caught red-handed in Freguesia, on Ilha do Governador, in the North Zone of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The investigations followed complaints from residents about loud noise coming from a property on Magno Martins Street. At the location, officers found several high-performance machines used for digital mining and determined that the house had electricity but no meter, indicating illegal theft.

Investigations revealed that the property was rented exclusively for cryptocurrency mining operations, and the criminal activity was carried out to keep the high-consumption equipment running continuously. Based on these facts, the criminal was charged with electricity theft.