Los Angeles police recovered $2.7 million worth of stolen Bitcoin (BTC) Mining Rigs from the airport.

Source: Cointelegraph Original: "{title}"

The Los Angeles Police Department recovered a batch of Bitcoin (BTC) mining machines worth $2.7 million, which were allegedly stolen by a criminal gang at the city's airport.

The Los Angeles Police Department stated on April 22 that detectives from its cargo theft investigation team collaborated with the Port Police, Union Pacific Railroad Police, and Airport Police to arrest two suspects, Oscar David Borrero-Manchola and Yonaiker Rafael Martinez-Ramos.

Authorities say the two are "important members" of a South American crime gang that engages in theft and sale of stolen goods in Los Angeles and surrounding areas.

The Los Angeles Police Department stated that during a search of a storage facility in the San Fernando Valley, located northeast of downtown Los Angeles, stolen items worth 4 million dollars were recovered, including Bitcoin mining machines that were stolen from Los Angeles International Airport. The batch of mining machines was about to be loaded onto a flight to the Hong Kong area.

The detective also discovered and seized suspected stolen items worth over $1.2 million, including tequila, clothing, shoes, audio equipment, coffee, shower gel, and pet food.

Borrero-Manchola and Martinez-Ramos are being held at the Vanais prison in the northwest of the city. Borrero-Manchola was released after being charged with receiving stolen goods, while Martinez-Ramos was arrested without a bail warrant.

The Los Angeles Police Department stated: "The investigation is still ongoing, and more people may be arrested."

The Los Angeles Police Department did not disclose the quantity and model of the seized mining machines, but a typical Bitcoin mining machine currently sells for between $3,000 and $5,000.

U.S. law enforcement had previously recovered stolen cryptocurrency mining machines. In July last year, the Los Angeles Police Department reported that they arrested a man and seized stolen Bitcoin mining machines worth $579,000, which were recovered from a truck and a storage unit.

At the end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018, Iceland experienced the largest bitcoin mining machine theft, where a group broke into a data center and stole over 600 mining machines.

According to reports, these mining machines eventually flowed into China. Three months after they were stolen, Chinese authorities seized a number of mining machines with similar quantity and model in Tianjin, located southeast of the capital Beijing.

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