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Malaysian Police crush crypto-mining kit to punish electricity thieves
Because in Miri District, that's how they roll
Police in the Malaysian district of Miri have used a steamroller to crush 1069 computers allegedly used to mine Bitcoin.
The accused in this case, according to Miri Police's Facebook page, were stealing electricity to power their mining operations.
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Local outlets report that the electricity theft was so substantial it caused blackouts.
Raids on half a dozen locations around Miri yielded six arrests, with all jailed for up to eight months and fined 8000 Malaysian Ringgit apiece (US$1900). Police also destroyed three houses that were used by the miners.
Police staged a crypto-crushing event for local media, which obliged with the (unpleasant-sounding) video below.
Here's the result of this crushing blow against electricity thieves.
Cryptocurrencies and digital tokens are legal in Malaysia, but issuers and exchanges are heavily regulated. ®