Police raided three illegal Bitcoin factories that were allegedly stealing electricity in Thailand.

Department of Special Investigation (DSI) officers converged on the mining rigs flagged over abnormal electricity usage in Samut Sakhon province, on January 31.

Officials swept through the three warehouses and seized 1,788 cryptocurrency mining machines.

Police Major Yutthana Praedam, director-general of the DSI, said the raids were conducted under 'Bitforge Operation', following a complaint from the Provincial Electricity Authority over the suspicious electric consumption.

He said: ‘In this operation, we managed to seize the largest haul of Bitcoin mining equipment. This violation not only caused the government to lose 500 million baht in revenue but also affected the country's economic and energy stability.

‘The Department of Special Investigation will take legal action against those involved in the operation and will investigate further to prevent such acts in the future.'

On January 9, police raided a warehouse storing hundreds of Bitcoin mining machines in Chonburi province. They seized 996 crypto mining equipment, four computers, three routers, and an electricity meter modified to show lower electric consumption.

Cryptocurrency prices have been surging after President Trump's victory in the U.S. elections. Bitcoin surged to a record 106,877 USD on December 16 after he reiterated plans to create a U.S. Bitcoin strategic reserve.

Trump was initially skeptical of crypto, but has since changed his stance and vowed to make the U.S. the 'crypto capital of the planet'.

Analysts have attributed the gains to anticipated crypto-friendly policies that Trump's term would bring. The price was also boosted by the involvement of long-time Bitcoin supporter Elon Musk, who campaigned for President Trump and has been rewarded with an influential post at the newly-created Department of Government Efficiency, which is named after Doge coin.