Venezuelan Government Closes Crypto Mining Facility Amid Corruption Cases

Illustration of one of the illegal crypto mines in Venezuela. (photo: twitter @AsonacripVe)

JAKARTA - Energy supply companies in Venezuela have closed crypto mining facilities across the country as part of the reorganization of the national crypto department and ongoing corruption investigations involving state oil companies.

According to local media reports, crypto mining companies and tweets from the Venezuelan National Cryptocurrency Association, mining facilities have closed in recent days in the states of Lara, Carabobo, and Bol Badminton. It's unclear how many crypto companies have been affected.

Several crypto exchanges were also ordered to stop operations. The closure of crypto mining facilities is believed to be part of an ongoing corruption investigation involving the Venezuelan PDVSA oil company and the country's crypto department.

Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab revealed on March 25 that government officials are suspected of carrying out parallel oil operations with the help of the national crypto department.

Saab commented on Twitter, quoted by Cointelegraph: "This network uses commercial company conglomerates to legitimize capital obtained from sales through the acquisition of crypto assets, personal assets, and real estate."

According to Saab, at least 10 people have been arrested in connection with this investigation, including Joselit Ramirez Camacho, who has led the crypto department since its inception in 2018, overseeing crypto tax rules and cryptocurrencies of the country - petro.

According to previous reports, Camacho was arrested on March 17 during the investigation. Since June 2020, Camacho has been registered on the Most Wanted List in the United States. At the time, the Department of Homeland Security Investigators issued prizes of up to 5 million US dollars (Rp75.8 billion) for any information that would lead to the arrest of this petro watchdog.

Authorities alleg that Ramirez has "deep political, social and economic ties" with suspected narcotics bosses, including Tareck El Aissami, the former vice president of Venezuela.

Venezuelan President Nicolighs Maduro announced the reorganization of the National Superintendent of Crypto Assets in a decree issued on March 17. Maduro's government claims the decision was intended to protect citizens from the negative effects of economic sanctions, among others.