Apple sues a former Vision Pro engineer, a MacBook is stolen along with unreleased Beyonce music, and a left-behind iPhone helps solve a pawnshop burglary feature in this week’s Apple Crime Blotter.
The latest in an occasional AppleInsider series, looking at the world of Apple-related crime.
Dallas cop accused of stealing from Apple Stores
A Dallas police officer who worked off-duty security at three local Apple Stores has turned himself in on a warrant after he was accused of stealing from the stores.
According to CBS News Texas, which cited the warrant, Senior Corporal Le Chau worked overnight security at the Apple NorthPark, Apple Knox Street, and Apple Galleria stores.
After the stores noticed a series of missing products from the stockrooms, Chau was caught on surveillance video “concealing approximately 25 pieces of merchandise on one occasion,” and at another point placing products “underneath his Dallas Police Raid jacket.” He was spotted, at another point, using a trash picker to grab a box of AirPod Pros on a top shelf.
Per the report, the officer was selling the products on Facebook Marketplace, and the total stolen items were valued at $37,806.
The department has placed him on administrative leave.
Ever since the introduction of the Apple Vision Pro in early 2024, there has not been a single documented case of a Vision Pro being stolen or used in the commission of a crime. However, one former Apple employee has been now been accused of stealing trade secrets related to the product.
CNBC reports Apple has sued a former engineer who worked on the Vision Pro of “stealing company trade secrets” before going to work for Snap.
Di Liu, a senior design engineer, has been accused in the lawsuit of “downloading thousands of documents in his final days at the Cupertino company last year and saving them to his personal cloud accounts.”
Apple claims in the suit that a search of Liu’s Apple-issued work laptop showed he had used his Apple credentials to “exfiltrate thousands of documents.”
Theft of Beyonce’s unreleased music also claimed MacBook Air
A rental car used by a member of pop star Beyonce’s team was broken into in Atlanta in mid-July, leading to the loss of hard drives containing her unreleased music. Also lost in the theft were laptops, including a MacBook Air.
According to CNN, the theft was from a car rented by the singer’s choreographer, and took place while the singer was in town for an Atlanta stop on her tour.
The stolen items included “two laptops and hard drives that contained watermarked music, unreleased music, footage plans and past and future set lists.” There was also the loss of a MacBook Air, headphones, clothes, and sunglasses.
Left-behind iPhone leads to sentencing in pawn shop theft
A Washington man has been sentenced to 84 months in prison, for his part in a 2023 burglary of a pawn shop in which dozens of guns were stolen. After a subsequent car crash, it was a left-behind iPhone that led to his apprehension.
Fox Baltimore explains that the iPhone displayed an “open GPS route” that led directly to the defendant’s home address.
Man sought in theft of iPad from Best Buy
Police in Virginia are looking for a man who they say stole an iPad, valued at more than $2500, from a Best Buy in Chesapeake, Va.
Per WAVY, the iPad was “left by a previous customer.”
Apple Watch helps catch UPS driver accused of stealing hemp
A UPS driver accused of stealing a package containing $5,000 worth of hemp was caught after an Apple Watch was left in the package, WFLA reported.
Then, the victim used the Watch’s tracking to find the iPhone it had connected with, which led the victim to the driver’s delivery truck. Video surveillance later captured the theft, leading to the driver’s arrest for grand theft.
iPhone theft suspect in Ghana gets 19 years
A man in Ghana, convicted of stealing an iPhone 16 Pro Max and a purse from a woman, has been sentenced to separate sentences of 14 years and 5 years, with the sentences to run concurrently.
According to Modern Ghana, a search turned up the stolen iPhone, as well as two pairs of AirPods and several other stolen items.
Police seek man who they say bought an iPad with a stolen credit card
A Northern California police department is seeking a man who they say, in August of 2024, used a stolen credit card to buy an iPad from a Best Buy.
Florida teen caught trying to sell stolen iPhone to ecoATM
A teenager from Parkland, Fla., has been arrested after surveillance video caught him trying to sell a stolen iPhone to an ecoATM kiosk at a Walmart.
According to Parkland Talk, police say the 18-year-old stole the iPhone from a park bench, and then took the device to the ecoATM, and was caught on surveillance video during both steps.
Thanks to the surveillance, and because the machine required him to use his driver’s license and supply a thumbprint, he was arrested quickly.
Ring that stole 43 iPhones stopped in India
Delhi Police have busted up a gang, who engaged in “receiving and dismantling stolen high-end mobile phones.” Per Hindustan Times, the 44 smartphones recovered included 43 iPhones and one Samsung Fold.
The two people arrested, according to the report, “came to Delhi in search of better earning opportunities but eventually turned to crime after facing financial struggles in the mobile repair business.”
