Mexican authorities uncover illicit crypto mining operation linked to cartels

Hidden in the Sierra Norte mountains of Puebla, Mexico, a crypto mining farm was quietly doing two things at once: minting digital assets and stealing the electricity needed to power the whole operation. Mexican authorities raided the site between September 6 and 8, seizing approximately 300 GPUs along with electrical transformers and satellite antennas. The facility was tucked near the Nuevo Necaxa hydroelectric dam, and the primary charge isn’t crypto mining itself, which remains legal in Mexico. It’s the unauthorized siphoning of power from federal infrastructure, a practice locally known as “huachicoleo,” a term originally coined for fuel theft that has now expanded to cover energy piracy more broadly. A pattern emerges in Puebla This wasn’t a one-off discovery. The raid marks Puebla’s fourth bust of an illegal crypto mining operation since early 2025, pointing to something more systemic than a few rogue miners with extension cords. Puebla’s security minister, Francisco Sánchez, noted that the facility’s remote location and the noise it generated were key factors in tipping off investigators. Authorities suspect organized crime involvement, with investigators looking into poten...