Did a police drug raid unexpectedly find a Bitcoin farm instead?

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On February 1, 2022, a Reddit user posted a video to the r/Unexpected subreddit titled, “Police were looking for drugs.” The video reportedly showed Spanish police breaking down a door and expecting to find marijuana or other drugs, but instead discovered a Bitcoin mining farm for cryptocurrency.

We discovered that the clip was originally posted by the National Police YouTube channel on January 28. It was recorded in Santiponce, Spain, near Seville. It is not known exactly when the bust took place:

On the official Spanish police website, a press release also from January 28 provided detailed details of the Bitcoin mining farm bust:

Police investigations have begun into a possible indoor marijuana plantation that may be located in some stables located in Santiponce. After carrying out the first investigations, the agents realized that the existing indications did not correspond to the cultivation of marijuana, but rather that these facilities could host a cryptocurrency farm of which there is practically no trace in Spain.

With this information, the stables were entered and searched, where officers discovered modern facilities for mining cryptocurrencies.

In other words, it’s true that the police originally thought the buildings might house a marijuana operation. However, according to the statement, before the door was broken down, police had investigated and expected to find not marijuana or drugs, but rather a Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency mining farm.

Inside the building. (Courtesy National Police/YouTube)

Research from NotebookCheck.net documented what was found in the raid and said the electricity used by the Bitcoin mining farm was made illegally:

Over 21 bitcoin mining ASICs were recovered from the site and what looks like five EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 graphics cards. The equipment, worth over €50,000, was generating around €3,500 in revenue per month. The Bitcoin mine in question was relatively new, so its owners are unlikely to have come close to breaking even on their investment. Police have yet to identify the owner of the farm in question and are investigating the matter.

Like many other countries in the world, Spain has no laws against cryptocurrency mining, and mining is (somewhat) legal in the country. However, connecting the Bitcoin mining farm to electricity was illegal and would have cost the state €2,000 per month.

Concerning the illegal use of electricity, the police press release specifies: “Outside the premises, an illegal connection to the electricity network was located to supply the equipment, noting a very high consumption of amperes, which , according to the technicians of the electricity company, could generate a monthly electricity fraud of 2,000 euros.

An alternative view inside the building. (Courtesy National Police/YouTube)

In sum, the police seen in the video received information just before the bust that led them to expect that it was not marijuana or drugs that they would find, but rather the mining farm of Bitcoin cryptocurrency that they eventually discovered.

Curious to know how the writers of Snopes verify information and craft their stories for public consumption? We’ve put together a few posts that help explain how we do what we do. Happy reading and let us know what else you would like to know.

Sources:

Ahmed, Zohaib. “Marijuana Search Lands Spanish Police on €50,000 Illegal Crypto Farm.” Gizmochina, January 31, 2022, https://www.gizmochina.com/2022/01/31/marijuana-search-lands-spanish-police-crypto-farm/.

Details of the press release. Spanish National Police. January 28, 2022, https://www.policia.es/_es/comunicacion_prensa_detalle.php?ID=10983#.

Ganti, Anil. “Spanish Police on the Lookout for Illegal Marijuana Plantation Find Cryptocurrency Mining Farm in Its Place.” NotebookCheck.net, January 29, 2022, https://www.notebookcheck.net/Spanish-police-on-the-prowl-for-an-illegal-marijuana-plantation-find-a-cryptocurrency-mining-farm-in- his-place.596337.0.html.

“Police dismantled a cryptocurrency farm in Seville (they thought it was marijuana).” El Chapuzas Informático, January 28, 2022, https://elchapuzasinformatico.com/2022/01/la-policia-dismantle-una-granja-de-criptomonedas-en-sevilla-creian-que-se-trataba-de-marihuana/ .

False scenario. “Police were looking for drugs” r/Unexpected on Reddit, February 1, 2022, www.reddit.com/r/Unexpected/comments/shs9s3/police_were_looking_for_drugs/.

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