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Duo That Defrauded Apple Out of 5,000 iPhones With Repair Scheme Could Spend Up to 20 Years in Prison
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The criterion is reproduction ability, which, while still possible, is somewhat diminished with 20 years in prison. The other four criteria of the Darwin Awards fully apply.
yup and they know what they’re doing so they’re not going to argue or push back. wild though.
As others have noted, it is unlikely that they will serve anything like the maximum allowed sentence.
Additionally, their immigration status may be in jeopardy once their sentence is completed, given that they are foreign nationals and likely in the US on some type of visa.
Additionally, their immigration status may be in jeopardy once their sentence is completed, given that they are foreign nationals and likely in the US on some type of visa.
If they haven't been sentenced yet (due June 2024) shouldn't the title read 'could', not 'will'...
"Duo That Defrauded Apple Out of 5,000 iPhones With Repair Scheme COULD Spend Up to 20 Years in Prison"
All these comments about 20 years being unfair as compared to other crimes, we don't actually know yet how many years it is. Statutory maximum is the highest punishment a person can receive, it does not mean mandatory.
People are laughing, but they got away with it for two years, screwed Apple out of 5,000 iPhones, from which they probably made a lot of money. They likely understood that they would eventually get caught after all, it's never about "if" you get caught but "when". Nobody knows if committing fraud is worth it until they're caught and sentenced. Only then can you compare the rewards you reaped to the punishment you must now endure.
Think about it for a minute. If someone did that today and managed to defraud Apple out of 5000 iPhone 15 Pro Max's (1TB) that's a whopping £7,995,000.00 GBP loss for Apple. If you sold them on for half the retail price you'd walk away with £3,997,500 GBP. OK, I forgot about the expense of purchasing the counterfeit devices, so let's say those counterfeit devices set you back £997,500.00 GBP. You're still walking away with 3 million GBP. That's a lot of wonga!
Think about it for a minute. If someone did that today and managed to defraud Apple out of 5000 iPhone 15 Pro Max's (1TB) that's a whopping £7,995,000.00 GBP loss for Apple. If you sold them on for half the retail price you'd walk away with £3,997,500 GBP. OK, I forgot about the expense of purchasing the counterfeit devices, so let's say those counterfeit devices set you back £997,500.00 GBP. You're still walking away with 3 million GBP. That's a lot of wonga!
Now it makes sense why Apple has been cracking down so hard on 3rd party replacement parts.
Amazing how people remember one part of this story (judge forced to give criminal a lengthy sentence due to '90s-era sentencing guidelines that gave them no flexibility) but not the result (judge reduces sentence as soon as he can so defendant doesn't serve that lengthy sentence).
So yeah, "pizza thief doesn't serve lifetime sentence" isn't as cool a story but that's the reality.
Peter: We simplified the whole thing, we rounded them all down, drop the remainder into an account we opened.
Joanna: So, you're stealing?
Peter: Ah, no. You don't understand. It's very complicated.
I'm not at all suggesting they shouldn't be held accountable or what they did wasn't okay.
But Apple sells 590 iPhones a minute. 20 years for costing the company fewer than 10 minutes worth of iPhones just seems like a crazy punishment; if indeed that's what ends up happening.
But Apple sells 590 iPhones a minute. 20 years for costing the company fewer than 10 minutes worth of iPhones just seems like a crazy punishment; if indeed that's what ends up happening.
If it was 1 iPhone or 1,000,000 iPhones, the end of the day it’s the same crime and same offenses. It’s FRAUD. Because the dollar loss went up for the value of products, the crime doesn’t change. Let’s use Bernie Madoff as an example. Whether he scammed 5 people, or 5,000,000 of them, the core crimes didn’t change. He committed fraud either way. The 20 years is a federal, STATUTORY MAXIMUM that each count carries. The way the federal system works is on most non violent crimes, each count (in this case, 5,000) of mail fraud still only carries a STATUTORY MAXIMUM of 20 years. Had they done this ONE TIME, not 5,000 they’d be looking at same time. Now, they will do a Pre Sentencing Report and total up any past crimes and they can issue small enhancements for certain things such as victims, gangs, leadership roles, etc. then they total up those points, go on a sliding scale for their past crimes (if they have any) and it comes up with a sentencing “range” based on Federal Sentencing Guidelines. That’s what they will get. There are upward departures for serious offenders and the judge may be able to go a little beyond the guidelines and there are downward departures for those first time offenders and people who snitch, cooperate and take responsibility. That’s how it works, detailed as possible. Madoff only got so much time because he had mail fraud, wire fraud, etc, etc and the sheer amount of victims and losses. In fact, if he were sentenced again today with changes that were made under U.S. Sentencing Commission, he’d of received a considerably shorter sentence. At his age he would have still died there, but it would have been shorter.
There’s a common saying, “Crime doesn’t pay.” Obviously crime DOES pay; otherwise there wouldn’t be any.
Where/when did I justify crime? But hey, It is not my problem, I don't live in the US, so my taxes are not going to feed and care for 2 morons in jail for 20 years because they scammed Apple with some counterfeit iPhones. It's your problem. The roof and meals for these two guys is at your expense for the next 20 years. Enjoy!
I noticed this, I pre-ordered a black and natural 15PM, picked them both up on release date. Opened the natural one and was happy with it so didn't even bother with the black (also the reports of fingerprinting put me off), so I returned it, fully unopened and was surprised when the person opened it to check and then processed my return.
But hey ho, now I know why they did that.
Hmmm, was it a Papa John's pizza by chance? Also, link to source? That's hilarious btw.
yup. I left several years ago, but guess it still goes on to this day sheesh. not really surprised.
sucks because now that totally unused phone has to go through the whole return / refurbish / repackage process I assume. instead of just going back on the shelf.
Well, for me it seems harsher putting them in prison for 20 years and that's the point. Their adult life is more or less over. And when they are finally out (eventually) the life will be brutally hard. Again, these two dudes scammed Apple with some counterfeit iPhones, didn't rape or kill anyone. Two decades in prison for that is like chopping the hand of a shoplifter that stole some AirPods from Wallmart. Does he deserve a punishment? Hell, yes, but dont cut his hand off FFS.
Yes I have. I lived there.
Then for a while in HK.
And now I live in Japan.
In fact, I have spent more time living as an immigrant in Asia than I have in my native country, the UK.
What was the actual point about me having been to China were you trying to address, exactly?
OK, then who exactly was released from prosecution because of their fathers in China? China is not more corrupt than US or any other country in the world. in fact, there is a good example of a son with a notebook that is not prosecuted because of his connection to elderly but powerful father in the US. Take a guess who he is.
What’s interesting is when this applies.
If I started a business that was just run by me, bought a bunch of counterfeit products, and sold them to consumers as if they were the real thing… would I be committing fraud? Probably, and I’d go to jail.
Amazon takes in counterfeit products all the time and sells them as the real thing. Perfectly okay! Nobody punished for this.