After a sequence of 13 robberies at totally different Apple Shops within the London space, police made a number of arrests. In the meantime, a Pennsylvania man has been jailed for an Apple present card “draining rip-off.”
The most recent in an occasional AppleInsider sequence, wanting on the world of Apple-related crime.
12 charged in London Apple Retailer “raids”
Twelve folks, 11 of them minors, have been charged for his or her half in a sequence of 13 robberies at Apple Shops in and round London.
In keeping with The Day by day Mail, the robberies befell over three weeks at Apple Retailer areas at Regent Avenue, Brent Cross, Bromley, Bentalls Centre and Watford. Among the many prison fees had been conspiracy to commit theft and conspiracy to steal from a store, whereas one other was hit with a drug cost.
iPhone thief caught on video in Manchester
In an unrelated Apple Retailer theft elsewhere within the U.Okay., a person was caught on video stealing a show iPhone. When a retailer worker requested him to depart, the person fled the shop.
In keeping with the The Day by day Mail, which described the suspect as a “deerstalker hat-wearing red-bearded criminal,” the theft befell on January 14 on the Arndale Procuring Middle in Manchester.
NEW: Thief snatches an iPhone from an Apple Retailer show and flees after being stopped from stealing different units
The incident occurred on the Apple Retailer in Manchester’s Arndale purchasing heart
An Apple worker requested the person to depart as he gave the impression to be making an attempt to take away pic.twitter.com/2YFFe0627d
— Limitless L’s (@unlimited_ls) January 16, 2025
Three Chinese language nationals plead responsible to present card rip-off
In federal courtroom in New Hampshire on January 14, a trio of Chinese language nationals pled responsible to their elements in a present card conspiracy involving Apple merchandise.
In keeping with the Justice Division, the rip-off concerned criminals in China fraudulently buying present playing cards, and sending present card information to accomplices within the U.S., after which the American accomplices used the present playing cards to buy “high-value electronics, principally Apple merchandise.” The cell members then consolidated merchandise in warehouses for cargo to Asia.
The three folks pled responsible to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud. Sentencing is scheduled for 3 separate dates in April.
Pennsylvania man sentenced in present card scheme
In one other case involving a Chinese language nationwide, Apple merchandise and present playing cards, a Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to 3 years in jail, for his half in what was described as an “Apple present card draining rip-off” within the Pittsburgh space.
The Beaver County Instances studies the 20-year-old man entered responsible pleas for operating corrupt organizations and arranged retail crime. In keeping with investigators, the person was stealing Apple present playing cards from Walmart areas and “altering the playing cards to obtain payouts.”
“After the present playing cards had been loaded with worth by unsuspecting purchasers, the defendant would drain the balances, leaving them with nugatory playing cards,” Pennsylvania Legal professional Basic Michelle Henry stated in an announcement.
DoorDash drivers had been utilized in scheme to steal Apple packages
There have been a sequence of thefts of packages in Norfolk, Mass., through which unwitting DoorDash drivers had been used to gather the packages, town’s police division stated.
The perpetrators apparently knew packages had been about to be delivered and despatched the drivers, who had been unaware they had been stealing. Two of the three packages contained Apple merchandise.
Lady tracks her son’s iPhone to China
A poster to the r/iPhone subreddit stated on January 12 that her son’s iPhone was stolen from New York Metropolis final October. She then adopted its sign from the Bronx, to a warehouse on Lengthy Island, and finally to Shenzhen, China. The girl additionally supplied maps of the iPhone’s trajectory.
“A police report was filed with NYPD on the day it was stolen,” the girl wrote. “However they clearly had zero curiosity within the case (even when it was nonetheless stay traceable within the metropolis).”
iPhone was amongst gadgets present in Cybertruck that blew up in Las Vegas
Among the many gadgets discovered within the Cybertruck of the person whose automobile exploded in entrance of the Trump Worldwide Resort Las Vegas on New 12 months’s Day was an iPhone, in addition to a smartwatch of an undetermined model.
The Unbiased writes 37-year-old Matthew Livelsberger, the energetic obligation Inexperienced Beret who died within the blast, additionally had fireworks and bank cards among the many possessions within the automobile.
AirTag helps resolve automobile theft
One police division in Colorado lately started handing out free AirTags to assist forestall automobile thefts.
In the meantime, down in Florida, an AirTag helped police resolve what they referred to as the primary automobile theft within the metropolis in 2025.
In keeping with The Palm Seaside Put up, the theft befell on January 6, when a Vary Rover Autobiography SUV was stolen. The proprietor’s spouse tracked the AirTag till it was present in Lauderdale Lakes, and the alleged thief was arrested after operating from the SUV.
The 20-year-old suspect was charged with grand theft of an car and resisting an officer with out violence.
Man accuses his mom of stealing iPad
In mid-December, a person within the Cleveland space reported that he “believed his mom had stolen his iPad.” Per Cleveland.com, the mom and son had “a historical past of household points.”