From October 2024 to June 2025, a 44-year-old resident of Zhytomyr region rented a workshop space in the regional center.

There, he set up a mining farm to extract a large amount of cryptocurrency. In doing so, the miner installed an external device in the electricity meter that allows for the remote blocking of the electricity consumption accounting process.

During a search, law enforcement documented operational mining equipment with a capacity of 90 kW/h that was not accounted for by the electricity meter. The equipment and the electricity meter with the external device were seized.

The suspect stole over 365,000 kW/h of electrical energy, causing property damage to JSC "Zhytomyroblenergo" amounting to nearly 2.3 million UAH. For comparison, the volume of stolen electricity is comparable to the annual consumption of four 9-story apartment buildings.

Under the procedural guidance of the Zhytomyr District Prosecutor's Office, the man has been notified of suspicion under part 2 of Article 188-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – theft of electrical energy in large amounts.

The issue of choosing a preventive measure for the suspect is also being resolved.

The pre-trial investigation is being conducted by investigators of the investigative department of the Zhytomyr Police Department No. 1 of the Main Directorate of the National Police in the region, with operational support from the Security Service of Ukraine in Zhytomyr region.

Note: According to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of committing a crime and cannot be subjected to criminal punishment until their guilt is proven in a lawful manner and established by a guilty verdict of the court.

For reference: A mining farm is specialized equipment for extracting (or "mining") cryptocurrency.