Police have moved to arrest a former Massachusetts state utility worker for allegedly stealing nearly $18,000 in electricity to run an illegal crypto mining operation. according to reportthe accused, Nadeem Nahas, set up a secret crypto-mining facility in the crawl space of Cohasset High School.
A new report noted that the judge issued a warrant for the arrest of Nahas after faulting the scheduled court appearance. Reports also state that the matter has been under investigation since December 2021.
Police Seize 11 Hidden Mining Computers At Cohasset High School
Nadeem Nahas is an employee in the facilities department for the city of Cohasset in Massachusetts, United States. According to the complaint filing, Nahas allegedly stole $17,492.57 worth of electricity to run crypto-mining computers between April 28 and December 14, 2021.
Local police became aware of the operation in December 2021 after the high school facilities director noticed strange computers and cables in the crawl space. He reported his observations to the police, who found 11 mining computers allegedly stored by Nahas after a three-month investigation.
Reports also noted that Nahas resigned from his position in the Cohasset facilities department in March. Meanwhile, he was supposed to be heard in court as the local police filed a complaint against him. But after Nahas failed to appear in court, a judge issued a default warrant for his arrest.
Courts often issue default warrants when someone refuses to stand trial or obey an order. Standard warrants authorize law enforcement agents to arrest defaulters.
Court documents show the city counted Nahas – from Norwell (he worked for the city of Cohasset in the facilities department) allegedly stole $17,492.57 in electricity because the computer was doing work 24/7 near the boiler room in the basement. This was found 12-14-21.
— Jonathan Hall (@JHall7news) February 23, 2023
Nahas is not the first to face charges for running a crypto mining operation with stolen electricity. In July 2021, Malaysian authorities cracked down on several illegal Bitcoin miners, seizing and destroying more than $1.2 million worth of Bitcoin mining rigs.
A shared videos by a local Malaysian media outlet on YouTube showing a steamroller running through 1,069 Bitcoin mining rigs.
In August 2020, Bulgarian law enforcement agents arrested two men for stealing more than $1.5 million in electricity to run a crypto mining farm. According to a local media report Bulgaria Today, two Bulgarians from Sofia channeled electricity to two illegal crypto farms for 3-6 months.
US Authorities Raise Alarm About Crypto Mining’s Energy Use
Authorities are concerned about more than just the amount of electricity consumed by crypto mining. They are also concerned about the carbon footprint on the environment. A new the report noted that eight members of the US parliament wrote to the Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the Department of Energy asking for information about crypto mining.
Lawmakers, including staunch crypto critic Elizabeth Warren, want to know how much energy crypto mining uses. In a letter addressed to USEPA administrator Michael Regan and Energy secretary Jennifer Granholm, the lawmakers noted the rapid growth of crypto mining in the US as a cause for environmental concern.
They demanded the mandatory disclosure of data collected by the department on crypto mining’s energy use and its environmental impact. Lawmakers gave recipients until March 6 to respond to the letter.
Representative Jared Huffman is one of the lawmakers who wrote the letter. At tweet, parliamentarians stressed that the energy use and pollution caused by cryptocurrency mining are a cause for concern. He also noted that he and Senator Warren called on officials to require crypto miners to transparently report their energy use and emissions.
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