On January 16, 2026, in the Sverdlovsk region, law enforcement seized more than 10,000 units of mining equipment. Formally — for 'illegal connection to electrical grids.' In reality, miners who were working legally, paying for electricity, and even registered in the state registry could have come under attack.

The story turned out to be resonant. The BeInCrypto editorial team gathered in one review the viewpoints of both sides: regulators and the crypto community.

The position of law enforcement

On January 16, 2026, a message appeared in the Telegram channel of Irina Volk, the official representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, about the cessation of the activities of an organized group in the Sverdlovsk region.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, in the cities of Nizhny Tagil and Kushva, the equipment for cryptocurrency mining was connected to the power grids with violations. The damage to the energy company was estimated at more than 16 million rubles.

During operational activities, law enforcement discovered over 10,000 units of mining equipment, detained three suspected organizers, and initiated criminal cases under part 2 of article 165 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The suspects were placed under house arrest.

The version of events from the participants of the crypto community

According to information from specialized Telegram channels, the situation looked different. Containers with ASIC equipment were located on the territory of an industrial enterprise. The mining hotel paid for electricity at market rates and was registered as an OMI — organizer of mining infrastructure.

The problem, they say, arose not from mining, but from a conflict between the management of the regional network company and the enterprise that was supplied with electricity. After that, an inspection arrived at the site together with law enforcement. The equipment was found and seized 'pending clarification', disregarding the legal status of the site.

Not only the organizers were affected, but also the clients who simply placed their equipment in an official mining hotel. Even if the seizure is formally temporary, in practice, returning the equipment is a long and painful process without guarantees.

The situation was sharply commented on by Sergey Mendeleev — an active participant in the crypto community, entrepreneur, and author of the Telegram channel 'Mendeleevshchina!'. He believes that registers and 'white' status do not provide protection. In reality, it is the legal miners who, according to his observations, end up being the most affected.

Not the first case

The story with miners is not new. Two years ago, a series of posts spread across the network on Pikabu from a p2p trader who decided to pay taxes on crypto 'by the law'. After several account blockages under 115-FZ, he was directly told: if you want them to leave you alone, legalize.

He gathered all operations, submitted a 3-NDFL declaration, passed the inspection, and paid the tax. The result — yet another account blockage. After that, he received a call from the Federal Tax Service and was urgently required to confirm all crypto operations.

Formally, he was clean. In fact, he found himself under even more pressure than those who continued to operate in the gray zone.

Unfortunately, under the conditions of 2026, as some participants of the crypto community believe, the legalization of cryptocurrency operations does not guarantee protection from regulators. Registers, declarations, and official statuses rather make you noticeable. And when an inspection begins, it is precisely the 'white' market participants who may be the first to be left without equipment, accounts, and a peaceful life.

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