Miners' paradise Iceland: 600 Bitcoin mining machines stolen

600 computers used to mine bitcoin were stolen in a recent theft in Iceland, the largest in the country’s history.

When people think of large-scale robberies, the last place to think of them is Iceland, a country with a population of only 348,680. However, Iceland recently suffered its largest crime wave in history, with thieves stealing 600 computers used for bitcoin mining.

A group of thieves has staged four thefts of bitcoin mining machines. Police said the computers were stolen from data centers in Iceland by criminal gangs. Two of the thefts took place on the Reykjanes Peninsula, where police chief Olafur Helgi Kjartansson said:
Such a large-scale theft case has never been seen before, and it is likely that a highly organized criminal gang is behind the case.

Three of the thefts took place in December, and the fourth in January. In total, 600 computers worth $2 million were stolen. Of course, if they were used to mine Bitcoin, they could be used to bring in much more value.

So far, 11 people have been arrested, including one security guard, and two remain in custody of a judge.

The 600 stolen computers have not been found yet, and police are asking power companies to report any suspicious electricity hogs in the hope that this will lead to the search for the stolen computers.