Four Venezuelan Bitcoin "miners" arrested for "stealing electricity to mine"

(Original title: Four Bitcoin "miners" in Venezuela were arrested for "stealing electricity for mining")

According to foreign media reports, Venezuelan officials arrested four Bitcoin "miners" this week, and they will face charges of Internet fraud and "stealing electricity for mining." According to a source, the four Bitcoin "miners" (three men and one woman) aged between 23 and 57 were arrested in Chalayave, south of Caracas, Venezuela.

According to Bitcoinist , the director of the Venezuelan Bureau of Scientific, Criminal and Criminal Investigation (CICPC) said that the four criminals operated more than 300 "AntMiners". Police said that they sold Bitcoin in the border town of Cucuta, Colombia and Venezuela, affecting consumption and the stability of electricity services in the region. In 2016, the region experienced multiple power outages due to problems in this system.

Computers used as Bitcoin mining machines consume a lot of energy and require a lot of electricity, so the cost of electricity has become a determining factor in whether Bitcoin mining can make money. Even though the Venezuelan government provides electricity subsidies, system problems still force these "miners" to choose industrial areas. Basically, in order to avoid power outages, they locate their business in industrial areas so that the machines can run uninterruptedly.

It is reported that four "miners" can earn about 100 bitcoins every month using more than 300 "Antminers".

A year ago, a man was arrested on similar charges and sentenced to more than three months in prison.