The Criminal Investigation Service (SIC) arrested, in Luanda, three citizens of Chinese nationality accused of various crimes, including money laundering, theft of electricity and the illicit exercise of economic activity. The detainees were operating in the municipality of Icolo and Bengo.
It was following investigative work, in the town of Botomona, in the municipality of Icolo and Bengo, that the SIC detained, inside a company’s construction site, three citizens of Chinese nationality, aged between 30 and 34. Among those detained are two computer engineers and a translator.
According to SIC-Geral spokesperson, Manuel Halaiwa, the citizens were arrested because there was strong evidence of the crimes of money laundering, theft of electricity, illicit exercise of economic activity and criminal association.
The SIC found that those involved, to complete their actions, took advantage of the activity of a company providing high voltage tower assembly services to, in a hidden manner, carry out cryptocurrency mining activities.
“Citizens installed three electrical energy transformation (PT) poles connected to a public distribution network to consumers in that location and, with their own resources, handled these materials, interconnected in two pavilions, with high electrical energy consumption. .
On site, they were installing the refrigeration system for the thousands of cryptocurrency mining processors,” he revealed. During the operation, all materials used in this activity were seized, upon execution of a search and seizure warrant, and the citizens now detained will be brought before the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
