Russian Authorities Bust Truck-Based Crypto Mine Draining Village Power

Mobile Crypto Mine Discovered in KamAZ Truck

Russian law enforcement in the Republic of Buryatia has uncovered a truck-based cryptocurrency mining farm stealing electricity from a village in the Pribaikalsky District. The unauthorized setup was discovered during a routine inspection and used a KamAZ truck equipped with 95 mining rigs and a mobile transformer substation.

It was illegally drawing energy from a 10-kilovolt line—enough to supply an entire small village, state news agency TASS reported. Two suspects reportedly fled the scene in an SUV before the police arrived.

Sixth Power Theft Incident in Buryatia This Year

Buryatenergo, a subsidiary of Rosseti Siberia, verified that this is the sixth instance of crypto-related electricity theft in the area since January. Authorities have cautioned against the effects of illegal mining on the network, including voltage drops, overloads, and blackout risks.

Crypto Mining Bans Spread in Russia

Buryatia has seasonal mining bans from November 15 to March 15 due to electricity deficits. Outside of those dates, only approved operators in areas like Severo-Baikalsky and Muisky can mine.

At the national level, Russia expanded mining prohibitions in late 2024. Mining is now prohibited in high energy seasons in places like Dagestan, Chechnya, and occupied eastern Ukraine territories. A total year-round ban is also now in place in the southern Irkutsk region—host to BitRiver’s big data center launched in Bratsk in 2019.

Hacker Group Targets Russians for Secret Mining

Apart from physical theft, cyber-based mining attacks are also rising. Cybersecurity firm Kaspersky recently linked the hacker group “Librarian Ghouls” (also “Rare Werewolf”) to a cryptojacking campaign targeting Russian users.

Through phishing emails that pose as official documents, the group infects systems, deactivates antivirus protection, and conducts mining operations in the early morning hours to avoid detection. The malware also steals login credentials and evaluates system specs to optimize crypto mining output.