Two men in Seri Iskandar, Perak, have been arrested by Malaysian police after being caught running an illegal Bitcoin mining operation. The Perak Tengah District Criminal Investigation Division, collaborating with national utility company Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB), seized 30 mining rigs in the latest raid.
The suspects siphoned electricity through unauthorized connections to power their lineup of mining rigs. In addition to the mining machines, the joint team seized various operational hardware, including internet routers, desktop switches, and spools of electrical wiring from the scene.
Perak Tengah Police Chief, Supt Hafezul Helmi Hamzah, issued a stern warning regarding this power theft modus operandi. Substandard electrical wiring not only inflicts losses on utility providers, but also poses a severe fire hazard to buildings and nearby residents. Police are now investigating the case under dual charges: Section 427 of the Malaysian Penal Code and Section 37(1) of the Electricity Supply Act 1990.
A Recurring Pattern of Crime
The bust in Seri Iskandar is part of a broader crackdown by police across multiple states. In July, authorities arrested two individuals in Tronoh and dismantled a similar operation that utilized 73 mining rigs hidden across three separate properties.
Two months earlier in May 2025, authorities in the state of Terengganu also seized 45 similar machines. A TNB report estimated the value of stolen electricity in the Terengganu case reached RM36,000 per month from just two properties. The fire risks highlighted by Supt Hafezul Helmi Hamzah have already materialized elsewhere. In February 2025, an illegal Bitcoin mining operation in Kuala Lumpur was uncovered by police only after a series of explosions and smoke triggered an emergency response from firefighters, who subsequently discovered that the electrical installations had been tampered with by the operators.
The Heavy Toll of Free Electricity
Despite ongoing police raids, the scale of power theft has weighed on TNB’s finances for years. Official company reports show that the national utility’s losses due to illegal Bitcoin mining started at RM5.9 million in 2020. Losses then surged to RM140.4 million in 2021, before recording RM124.9 million in 2022 and RM67.1 million throughout 2023.
Cumulative losses for Malaysia’s national utility provider from this illicit activity surpassed RM440 million, or roughly $101 million, over those four tracked years. As underground operators continue seeking unpaid power loopholes to maximize their profit margins, law enforcement and utility officials remain in a race against time to sever every hidden wire draining public resources.
Reported via crypto.news.
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only, not financial advice. Cryptocurrency assets are highly volatile and carry significant risk. Always do your own research (DYOR) and never invest more than you can afford to lose.
