Scammers tried to deceive Apple by exchanging 5,000 fake iPhones for real ones

[Teacher]

Two Chinese citizens were found guilty of transferring more than 5,000 fake iPhones (worth more than $ 3 million) to Apple in order to replace them with real devices. Now scammers face up to 20 years in prison.

The criminal scheme was based on the fact that Apple provides users with a one-year warranty on new iPhones, allowing them to return faulty devices for free replacement. In addition, Apple offers additional insurance plans that allow you to extend this warranty period.

The company offers several ways to transfer faulty iPhones for repair or replacement. Options include free shipping your phone to Apple via UPS, visiting an Apple retail store, or contacting an authorized repair and service center.

The US Department of Justice reports that between July 2017 and December 2019, Haotian Sun and Pengfei Xue, as well as their co-conspirators Wen Jin Gao and Dian Luo, abused this Apple service in an effort to change as much as possible fake iPhones for real ones.

"The purpose of this fraud was to illegally enrich the participants in the conspiracy by fraudulently obtaining authentic iPhones from Apple after providing Apple with fake iPhones for repair and replacement," the indictment says.

The authorities found that the fraudsters sent fake devices from Hong Kong to the boxes of commercial mail acceptance agencies (CMRA) in UPS branches. Moreover, the boxes were opened using real driver's licenses and university identity cards.

Sun and Xue then handed over fake iPhones with fake serial numbers and IMEI numbers to Apple retail stores or authorized suppliers, and in return received new smartphones from the company. After that, the real devices were sent back to Hong Kong, to other participants in the fraudulent scheme for subsequent sale. In total, about 5,000 fake iPhones were transferred to Apple, and the company's losses are estimated at $ 3 million.

However, such activity could not go unnoticed for long, and American postal inspectors arrested the scammers back in December 2019. This week, a jury found Sun and Xue guilty of mail fraud, as well as conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Now each of them faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for June 21, 2024.

• Source: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/two-...lion-dollar-scheme-defraud-apple-inc-out-5000

It is worth noting that this is not the first such case. Back in 2019, several people in California were charged with similar charges, as they handed over to Apple about 10,000 fake smartphones and iPads, forcing the company to change them to real ones.

• Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/p...phones-scheme-biggest-fraud-its-kind-southern

 

[Man]

Two Chinese citizens received prison sentences in the United States for fraud. They fraudulently received $2.5 million worth of goods from Apple, exchanging more than 6000 fake iPhones for real ones.

Recall that the fraudulent scheme was based on the fact that Apple provides users with a one-year warranty on new iPhones, allowing them to return defective devices for free replacement. In addition, Apple offers additional insurance plans to extend this warranty period.

The company offers several ways to transfer defective iPhones for repair or replacement. Among the options: free delivery of the phone to Apple via UPS, FedEx or DLH, visiting an Apple retail store or contacting an authorized repair and service center.

As we have previously revealed, between July 2017 and December 2019, Haotian Sun and Pengfei Xue, as well as their accomplices Wen Jin Gao and Dian Luo, abused this service by Apple, seeking to exchange as many fake iPhones as possible for real ones.

Thus, US law enforcement officers found that fraudsters sent fake devices from Hong Kong to the boxes of commercial mail acceptance agencies (CMRA) at UPS branches. Moreover, the boxes were opened using real driver's licenses and university IDs.

Sun and Xue then handed over fake iPhones with fake serial numbers and IMEIs to Apple retail stores or authorized suppliers, and in return received new smartphones from the company. After that, the real devices were sent back to Hong Kong to other participants in the fraudulent scheme for subsequent sale.

"In the course of this criminal conspiracy, the members of the group handed over to Apple more than 6,000 fake phones [previously reported about 5,000 devices, at the same time. This resulted in losses of more than $2.5 million," the U.S. Department of Justice said this week.

Of course, the activity described above could not go unnoticed for long, and American postal inspectors arrested the scammers back in December 2019.

Earlier this year, a jury found Sun and Xue guilty of mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Then it was reported that each of them faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Sun was sentenced to 57 months (four years and seven and a half months) in prison and three years under supervision after his release, while Xue received 54 months (four and a half years) in prison and three years under supervision upon release. In addition, the court ordered them to pay Apple 1,072,200 and 397,800 in damages.

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