Public prosecutors in the Libyan city of Zliten have arrested 10 Chinese nationals for allegedly setting an illegal crypto-mining operation in a disused iron factory on the western coast of Libya, media reports said.

Photos and videos published online by the office of Libyan Attorney General Siddiq Al-Sour show officials dismantling huge processing systems uncovered in the city of Zliten, to the east of Tripoli province, reports The New Arab.

“We are investigating two cryptocurrency mines in the jurisdictions of Tripoli and Misrata,” said the Attorney General's office in a Facebook post as quoted by the news portal.

“10 Chinese nationals have been apprehended, who were found in possession of the computers performing complex calculations.”

The devices and equipment found have been seized pending further investigation and the Chinese nationals held in custody, according to the statement as quoted by The New Arab.

Libya has officially banned crypto-currency mining.