Police raided a house hiding an illegal Bitcoin mine in Thailand.

Officials stormed the home suspected of siphoning power to operate the illegal devices in Buriram province, on March 25.

Cops and provincial electricity authorities arrived at the residence and found that the ground floor had been newly renovated with partitions. Behind the walls of zinc sheets, they found 30 crypto mining machines and computers. They also discovered that the home's electric meter had been tampered with.

Adul Phuchan, manager of the local electricity office, said they have been receiving frequent reports of electric outages in the small village in the Phutthaisong District.

He said: 'It was quite surprising because why does a small village use so much electricity? The transformer in the area had also exploded twice already.

'The electricity usage has been abnormal since March 2024 until March 2025, for a total of one year, causing damage of at least 600,000 baht (around 13,700 GBP).  

‘We will charge the homeowner for stealing electricity and modifying the electricity meter.'

The resident, Aunjit Yodwan, 69, said she lived in the rural abode with her son-in-law Phattanakit Ploywong, 35, and his family.

She said: 'My son-in-law, who works as a mobile phone repairman, asked to store belongings in the house in early 2024. I thought nothing of it because our monthly electricity bill remained the same at around 500 to 800 baht (11 to 18 GBP). I did not know that the electric meter had been tampered with.'

Police said they were investigating the pensioner's involvement in the crypto mining operation.

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.

(1 GBP = 43.80 THB)