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An IT specialist working for a medical institution in the Russian Altai Republic has been arrested for illegal cryptocurrency mining on the premises of a Covid-19 hospital. The man minted digital currencies using stolen electricity for nearly a year before police busted his crypto farm.
An employee of the Republican Hospital in Gorno-Altaisk, the capital of the Altai Republic in southern Siberia, has been arrested for setting up a crypto farm at a medical facility. He had been operating the mining rig since early last year, Russian crypto news outlets Bits.media and RBC Crypto reported.
In February 2021, the man, who worked as a chief information security specialist, installed the coin minting hardware and connected it to the servers of the hospital previously used to treat patients with Covid-19, the Republic’s Ministry of the Interior detailed in a press release.
According to a statement from the regional branch of the Federal Security Service (FSB), the mining equipment ran for almost an entire year on stolen electricity, causing damages amounting to over 400,000 rubles (close to $7,000 at current exchange rates).
The law enforcement agency further noted that the IT expert turned to cryptocurrency mining when he experienced financial difficulties. He quickly realized that he did not have the necessary computing power and energy at home and decided to set up mining at his workplace.
During searches conducted at the suspect’s home, police and FSB officials seized mining equipment and other computer equipment. The cryptominer, whose identity was not disclosed, could face up to two years in prison for his offenses under the Russian Federation’s Criminal Code.
The case in Altai has been settled amid the growing popularity of crypto mining as an alternative source of income for many ordinary Russians. Minting digital coins in basements, garages, dachas and even public institutions has become a common practice, especially in regions that offer cheap, subsidized electricity, including Siberian oblasts like Irkutsk.
Cryptocurrency mining is not yet fully regulated in Russia, whose rich energy resources and cool climate are coveted by miners. Steps have been taken to raise electricity tariffs for those who violate household electricity.
In May this year, authorities in Dagestan shut down two illegal crypto farms, confiscating more than 1,500 mining machines. One of them was located at a pumping station of the Water Supply Company of the Russian Republic.
The mining facility had been set up there by a resident of the capital Мahachkala who collaborated with employees of the waterworks. Meanwhile, a crypto mining installation was also discovered at Russia’s oldest Butyrka prison. It was allegedly operated by a deputy.
Do you think Russia should regulate home mining alongside industrial scale cryptocurrency production? Share your thoughts on the topic in the comments section below.
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