Where are the 9,000 confiscated Bitcoin miners?

Since the beginning of 2024, Paraguayan authorities have seized more than 9,300 ASIC devices used to mine Bitcoin. A technological and valuable machinery, whose whereabouts are not entirely clear.

As reported by CriptoNoticias, the National Electricity Administration (ANDE), the Public Ministry, the Judiciary and State security agenciesthey have carried out some 21 interventions so far this year to Bitcoin mining farms apparently illegally connected to the national electrical grid.

There are, in total, 72 raids since 2019, when the Paraguayan government’s crusade against illegal mining began. For the authorities, this activity generates harm to Paraguayans, as well as monetary losses to the State.

According to what different representatives of the mining industry in Paraguay have said, such as Fernando Arriola, member of the Paraguayan Chamber of Fintech; the miners seized by the government of that country They are usually part of a liquidation process. That is, they are sold to the public to recover money.

However, there is no clarity on the current location of Bitcoin miners in Paraguay. Although more than 9,000 ASICs have been confiscated, which is equivalent to a large mining farm, there is no precise information about their whereabouts.

In fact, yesterday CriptoNoticias reported that more than 400 Bitcoin mining equipment in Paraguay disappeared. These devices were inside a warehouse raided by the Paraguayan authorities in the city of Villeta. This inspection was carried out in March and it was not until this month of June that they realized the disappearance of the ASICs.

No trace or response

Now, to try to find the whereabouts of the Bitcoin ASIC miners seized by the Paraguayan government, CriptoNoticias asked the three organizations in charge of inspections for comments. These are the ANDE, the Public Ministry and the Supreme Court of Justice (CSJ).

At the time of publishing this report, Reason was only obtained from the Judiciary, more precisely from the Directorate of Transparency and Access to Public Information of the CSJ. This entity, however, was only limited to processing the request and including it in the files. They did not provide data of any kind.

Another institution that responded to CriptoNoticias’ request was the National Secretariat for the Administration of Seized and Confiscated Assets (Senabico). This entity, dependent on the Presidency of the Republic, is responsible for the custody, custody, administration and destination of assets of economic interest seized, confiscated or abandoned in the country.

In an email, responded to by Senabico’s Access to Public Information office, they clarified that “they have not received or made available any Bitcoin miner that could be put into administration.”

This means that Senabico, although its powers include managing all assets seized in Paraguay “in accordance with the principles of efficiency and transparency of the public service,” is not currently the custodian body of the more than 9,300 Bitcoin miners seized since January 2024.

So, if the Supreme Court of Justice does not clarify (yet) the whereabouts of the miners and if Senabico claims not to have information about this equipment, where are the more than 9,000 Bitcoin miners confiscated in Paraguay?

As suggested by Paraguayan journalists, such as Joel Corvalán, the duty is to seal the warehouses or warehouses where Bitcoin miners operate illegally, so that the prosecutor’s office can proceed with the confiscation.

Although other communication professionals, such as Mike Silvero, warn that there are complaints that when illegal mining farms are closed in Paraguay, the equipment is resold and reused, moving it to other places.

Now, everything seems to indicate that these devices They are under the custody and administration of ANDE itself and the Public Ministry. This is if we take into account that, in various seizures carried out so far, they have clarified that some of the confiscated devices remain under the protection of the prosecutor’s offices.

However, even though ANDE received a request for comments since the beginning of this month and the Paraguayan Prosecutor’s Office has also been contacted for several days, None of these institutions have responded to CriptoNoticias. Which makes it difficult to establish with certainty where the Bitcoin miners confiscated since January are.

What is known is that both ANDE and Senabico signed a cooperation agreement “for efficient management in the administration of seized assets.” This agreement implies a “more transparent” management of assets that are confiscated by the State, such as the more than 9,000 Bitcoin miners, whose whereabouts are a real mystery.