An explosion in a residential home reveals a Bitcoin mining operation powered by stolen electricity.
An explosion in the Malaysian city of Bandar Puncak Alam has exposed an illegal Bitcoin mining operation.
The incident occurred on February 11 when smoke and flames erupted from a house on Lorong Cekara Purnama Street. A local resident raised the alarm at 11:41 AM. After firefighters extinguished the blaze later in the afternoon, investigators uncovered an unauthorized setup: nine Bitcoin mining devices, cooling fans, and a D-Link router, all illegally connected to the power grid.
In Malaysia, tampering with electrical lines is a criminal offense under Section 37 of the Electricity Supply Act, carrying fines of up to 100,000 Malaysian ringgit (approximately $24,000) and prison sentences of up to five years.
Last month, Thai police uncovered a similar operation in Chon Buri, where around 1,000 mining machines had siphoned off an estimated $3 million worth of electricity. Between 2018 and 2023, Malaysia is estimated to have lost around $750 million due to similar activities.
Malaysian authorities have launched an investigation and are seeking information that could lead to the arrest of those responsible.
