iPhone scammer who cost Apple $6 million in damages is sentenced to 51 months

An iPad and iPhone scammer who is estimated to have made Apple pay more than $6 million to replace devices has been sentenced to 51 months in prison.

His two co-defendants were each sentenced to 41 months in prison in 2023. The three also had over $4 million worth of property and cash seized…

This scam was sophisticated. The team purchased non-functional but highly convincing counterfeit iPhones and iPads in China that were given the serial numbers of genuine products sold by Apple in the United States.

They then hired hundreds of people to bring fake products into Apple Stores, claiming they wouldn’t turn on. Apple discovered the device was defective, checked the serial number, found it matched a product under warranty, and issued a replacement. These authentic devices were then shipped back to China and sold.

This is the same technique used in a previous scam worth an estimated $1 million.

The three instigators were all brothers, two of whom had previously been sentenced to 41 months in prison. patent tree apple It is reported that the third and final person was sentenced.

Zhiwei “Allen” Liao was sentenced today in federal court to 51 months in prison for his role as the organizer and leader of an international conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit Apple products. […]

U.S. District Judge Cynthia Ann Bashant ruled that Liao Ziwei was the organizer and leader of a large international criminal organization that trafficked counterfeit goods throughout North America for several years, and that a severe sentence was appropriate. He said that.

The scheme was sophisticated and dynamic, importing counterfeit products from China that appeared to be genuine and still under warranty. Zhiwei Liao closely controlled the operation and created a moving target for law enforcement by directing the transfer of Apple counterfeit products and criminal proceeds to various co-conspirators, businesses, and family members throughout the scheme. The co-conspirators assisted in these efforts to evade law enforcement by exchanging counterfeit goods using various pseudonyms and email accounts.

The scheme ran for several years before it was finally uncovered with the help of the FBI and San Diego Police Department.

“Mr. Liao’s sentencing caps a major chapter in a multi-year investigation that exposed an international and sophisticated scheme to sell counterfeit products around the world,” said FBI San Diego Special Agent in Charge Stacey.・Moi said.

Photo: Apple