A deputy dwelling minister advised parliament on Wednesday that since 2022, Malaysian police have arrested 629 folks and brought again 75,578 crypto mining machines in additional than 3,000 raids. The battle in opposition to miners who steal energy from the nationwide grid is getting more durable.
In accordance with Bernama and The Star, Datuk Seri Dr. Shamsul Anuar Nasarah gave these numbers throughout Ministry Query Time within the Dewan Rakyat, the decrease home of parliament. They’re updated as of Might 2026 and embrace 3,049 raids throughout the nation. The Royal Malaysian Police, Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), the Power Fee, and native councils all labored collectively on the raids.
A lawmaker named Datuk Siti Zailah Mohd Yusoff requested Shamsul a follow-up query. She pushed the ministry about what she referred to as an absence of prosecutions in opposition to miners who steal electrical energy. He stated that legislation enforcement will now rely extra on sharing data and utilizing know-how to seek out high-risk areas earlier than raids. This may enable for what he referred to as a “quicker and extra exact” response.
Proudly owning crypto is authorized, stealing energy shouldn’t be
In Malaysia, folks can personal and commerce crypto, however the authorities doesn’t acknowledge it as cash. Digital belongings are regulated by the Securities Fee Malaysia. Financial institution Negara Malaysia is the nation’s central financial institution. Its job is to maintain the economic system steady and implement legal guidelines in opposition to cash laundering.
The crackdown is supposed to cease the theft of electrical energy that comes with it. Shamsul stated {that a} setup is breaking the legislation when it makes use of unauthorized connections, tampered meters, breaks down provide programs, or runs with out the best licenses. Since Malaysia doesn’t have a selected legislation in opposition to crypto mining, individuals who do it are charged beneath the Electrical energy Provide Act with bypassing or tampering with meters.
Individuals who wish to steal energy are drawn to mining rigs. They preserve going and pull heavy hundreds on a regular basis. Shamsul advised parliament that operators usually tamper with meters to cover how a lot vitality is getting used. This drives up utility prices and might make the provision that properties and companies close by depend upon much less steady.
He additionally talked about claims made earlier than about raids in Manjung, Perak. He stated that investigators discovered no proof that any cops, brokers, or members of the Manjung municipal council have been concerned in any unlawful raids within the space.
Losses high $1 billion
TNB says that between 2018 and 2024, electrical energy theft associated to crypto mining elevated by about 300%. The variety of circumstances discovered elevated from 610 to 2,397, as Cryptopolitan reported in November 2025. The ability firm stated that unlawful energy use by miners at about 14,000 places between 2020 and August 2025 value it greater than 4.6 billion ringgit, or about $1.1 billion.
This is identical driver that the police have used earlier than, Shamsul stated. It’s the necessity for digital belongings and the cash that may be made when token costs change. The lawmaker made it clear that positive factors don’t make crimes much less severe and that unlawful mining is in opposition to the legislation and prices energy corporations and their prospects actual cash.
Investigators are making lists of properties that is perhaps suspects. TNB has been placing in good meters that may inform immediately if somebody is tampering with them or utilizing them in a means that isn’t regular.
