Venezuelan Army Seizes 35 Bitcoin Mining Rigs in ‘Illegal Farm’ Raid

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

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September 9, 2024 19:30 EDT

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Venezuela’s Bitcoin mining crackdown appears to be continuing unabated, with the nation’s army seizing 35 rigs in a raid on a farm in Guárico.

Despite President Nicolás Maduro’s recent comments about “returning” his country “to the crypto path,” police and army officials are continuing to hunt for illegal crypto miners.

Bitcoin Mining Rigs Taken Offline

In a tweet from the Strategic Command Operations of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (CEOFANB), officers said they seized 35 “devices for mining digital assets.” Soldiers also seized 30 “extractors” and several powerful electric fans.

The relevant military unit’s operational strategic commander, Domingo Hernández Lárez, said the miners “did not have permits or licenses” to carry out BTC mining “operations.”

The Venezuelan military has been dispatched to “disconnect” Bitcoin mining farms. The government says many miners use illegal National Electric System (SEN) connections.

Maduro’s government has claimed that illegal Bitcoin and altcoin miners are to blame for “recurring power outages” over the past few years.

The CEOFANBVE said it conducted its search in conjunction with Public Ministry officials. It said the miners had set up shop in a private house in the El Mirador District of the Juan Germán Roscio Nieves municipality.

Officers also said they had seized a Chevrolet and a Jeep. They published pictures of armed soldiers near the haul.

“Venezuela is a democratic state [with] a legal framework that regulates [crypto] mining activities. It has a registration system for [crypto] miners, crypto exchanges, and crypto-related services.”

Strategic Command Operations of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces

We Must Fight Threat to Power Grids – Gov’t

The Ministry of Electrical Energy has claimed that cutting illegal miners off from the grid will help lower pressure on networks.

The ministry said the crackdown would allow it to “continue offering efficient and reliable service to all Venezuelan citizens.”

Maduro recently claimed that a group of “bandits and thieves” had thwarted previous crypto adoption efforts in the country.

He told a group of Venezuelan business leaders that the country needed to “get back down” the crypto path.

At the height of the Venezuelan crypto push, the government ordered the army’s engineering core to mine BTC.

However, it seems soldiers have since been redeployed to fight illegal BTC miners. They began launching raids around the country last year.