MELAKA – Melaka police are tracking down a man believed to be the main culprit in a bitcoin mining syndicate in the state, causing Tenaga Nasional Bhd to suffer losses of about RM9 million since February 2019.
State police chief Datuk Abdul Majid Mohd Ali said Tan Joe Pheng, 26, is wanted for running bitcoin mining activities at 18 premises.
“I urge those who have information on the suspect to inform police. The suspect is also urged to surrender at the nearest police station,” he told a press conference here today.
He said Tan is wanted to facilitate investigations under Section 379 of the Penal Code and Section 37(1) of the Electricity Supply Act 1990, which provides for imprisonment of up to 10 years or a fine not exceeding RM1 million upon conviction.
Police have detained six individuals aged 29 to 39, including a man and a woman believed to be the siblings of the main suspect, and who acted as accountant and manager of the syndicate, he said.
All six suspects, including an Indonesian man, were detained separately in Melaka and Selangor on March 16 and 17.
Majid said police also raided six premises, two each in Melaka Tengah, Alor Gajah and Jasin districts, which were used to carry out bitcoin mining, and seized 317 mining machines and various other equipment, as well as 38 keys, believed to be to premises across the state.
In a separate development, he said four men aged between 25 and 60 were arrested in relation to four cases involving arson and 17 cases of dousing paint on Ah Long victims’ homes since 2019.
He said the men were paid between RM200 and RM300 to spray paint, and RM500 to set fire to, the houses of borrowers who failed to make repayments to illegal moneylenders, as well as their neighbours’ homes.
“The men were arrested separately around Melaka Tengah on March 10, and various items believed to have been used to commit the offences were seized.
“The investigation found that all those arrested were hired by an Ah Long who operates in Johor via Facebook and WhatsApp. Communication and payment transactions between them were done virtually.”
He said the case is being investigated under Section 436 of the Penal Code. – Bernama, March 26, 2021
