Mexican Authorities Seize Cartel Crypto Mining Farm With 300 GPUs in Puebla

Mexican authorities have dismantled a clandestine cryptocurrency mining farm in the mountains of Puebla, seizing 300 graphics cards, satellite internet links and industrial transformers that were illegally drawing on hydroelectric power, according to a Tom’s Hardware report citing Reuters.

The operation near the town of Tlaola is the fourth such illicit facility uncovered in the region since early last year, a signal that drug cartels are expanding beyond trafficking into crypto mining as a channel for laundering money.

Inside the Seized Operation The farm ran on stolen electricity, and residents of neighboring communities told Reuters they could hear the transformers and cooling equipment from roughly a kilometer away.

The facility sat about two kilometers from the nearest village, a remote location chosen for its cheap power and its distance from oversight.