1,069 bitcoin mining machines were demolished, after Malaysian authorities confiscated the rigs between February and April, local media reported Friday.

The mining machines were seized in a joint operation carried out by police and Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) in Miri, a Malaysian city on the northwest coast of the island of Borneo. The worth of the machines is estimated around 5.3 million Malaysian ringgits ($1.26 million). All seizures that had been settled in court were disposed of at the Miri district police headquarters Friday.

Miri police chief ACP Hakemal Hawari said eight individuals were also arrested for being involved in illegal mining activities. He said in a statement:

“A total of six people have been successfully charged under Section 379 of the Penal Code for electricity theft and have been fined up to RM8,000 and jailed for up to eight months.”

According to the authorities the mining machines used electricity stolen from SEB’s electricity supply lines to mine bitcoin.

Hawari said that SEB suffered a loss of 8.4 million Malaysian ringgits due to electricity theft from the bitcoin mining activities. He further detailed:

“The electricity theft for mining bitcoin activities has caused frequent power outages and in 2021, three houses were razed due to illegal electricity supply connections.”

Dayakdaily, a local Malaysian news outlet, posted a video of the destruction of seized bitcoin mining machines Friday.

Source: Sound of Money: Malaysia Destroys 1,000 Seized Bitcoin Mining Rigs – Fintechs.fi