Man admits to scheme at Niagara Falls bitcoin mining company

A Washington state man has admitted to stealing more than $53,000 worth of bitcoin from a Niagara Falls company after secretly redirecting about 100 computers he had been hired to operate for the company.

Christopher Rankin, 40, pleaded guilty Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer to transmitting a program, information, code, or command to a protected computer and causing damage, which carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of $100,000, according to U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo.

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