Apple devices have a tendency to get caught up in nefarious activities, and once again that’s the case as fake I.D.’s are used to rake in thousands of dollars worth of products.
According to a report published by Cleveland.com, two men based out of New York were arrested for visiting several different Verizon retail locations throughout Northeast Ohio, and buying a variety of Apple products, including iPhones, iPads and Apple Watches, with fake I.D.’s and stolen credit cards, equaling more than $16,000. The pair were identified as Jorge Escotto, 23, and Joshua Gonzalez, 25 and were charged with identity theft and receiving stolen property.
The pair were identified in one Verizon store by the employees, after another store, which the pair had already purchased Apple products from, photographed one of the culprits and sent the picture to nearby retail sites. They said the out-of-state men were probably using fake identification cards for the purchases. Indeed, when police finally intervened, it was revealed that Gonzales had two I.D. cards: One from New York and one from Connecticut, both of which had the same picture of Gonzales.
Escotto was actually in an Uber car when the police showed up and asked to leave, to which the police let him go because he hadn’t entered the store. However, upon further investigation, it was discovered that Escotto had indeed gone into other Verizon stores to purchase the Apple goods. Escotto had actually been dropped off at the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, and was detained there before he could board a flight.
This hasn’t been the only Apple-centric crime to take place in the States recently. In Oregon, a racket was busted that saw more than 470 iPhones seized, along with over $585,000 worth of Apple gift cards. Due to the demand of Apple products internationally, and the high price tag they warrant, these types of crimes are almost commonplace at this point.
[via Cleveland.com; h/t Dave!]
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