Texas man fired for selling school-owned iPads in the Apple Crime Blotter
Shots fired near a Pittsburgh Apple Store, Find My iPhone solves Akon's car theft, and several iPhones were seized from a Capitol riot defendant.
The Apple Store at Ross Park Mall in Pittsburgh
The latest in an occasional AppleInsider series, looking at the world of Apple-related crime.
According to News 4 San Antonio, the official was caught when a local family answered a Facebook Marketplace ad and purchased multiple iPads from him in a transaction that entailed meeting him in a parking lot. Once the family's mother realized the iPads were "a type marketed to schools," she searched the man's name and discovered he worked for the school district.
She notified the TV station, which discovered a video of a school board meeting in which the same man had recommended that the district spend $483,000 on iPads and other equipment.
Fox 5 reports police later recovered the automobile in Forest Park, about 20 miles away.
This is far from the first Apple-related theft involving a famous person in Atlanta. Atlanta Falcons player Hayden Hurst had his team-issued iPad and Beats headphones taken after a game in October of 2020, while Josh Brolin's iPad was stolen from his car in November. The latter theft, like the Akon incident, took place in the Buckhead neighborhood.
According to a search warrant obtained and posted to Twitter by extremism researcher Seamus Hughes, the man, who was photographed inside the Capitol wearing a "Camp Auschwitz" hoodie, had at least four iPhones taken from his residence by the FBI, in addition to a MacBook and numerous accessories.
Other items referenced in the warrant included pictures of Adolf Hitler, a "folder titled 'Whites Only Material'" and "swastika artwork." The warrant was dated January 13.
The man has been charged with six gross misdemeanor charges of interference with privacy, based on the six videos that were found. However, the report added that many more images were discovered that fall outside the statute of limitations.
Due to regulations related to the potential for disease contamination, the hog farm requires showering before entering and leaving.
A group of 30 or 40 people huddled in the back room of the store. The situation ended with two juveniles arrested and brought to juvenile detention.
Earlier in the month, a shooting at Aventura Mall in Florida also had employees and customers waiting inside the mall's nearby Apple Store for two hours, WSVN reported.
According to the Justice Department, the investigation began after the 51-year-old was caught exposing himself to a minor female. That led to searches of his devices, which discovered offending images and videos.
The DOJ also said that while the man had erased his iPad, the address of a child pornography website was found in his iCloud account.
In addition, per the Department of Justice, the man appears to have made clumsy attempts to hide or destroy computers and other devices.
In addition to finding an iPhone, investigators observed "power cords and computer-related equipment" in the man's living room, but no computer, and later found "damaged remains of a computer desk and computer components in a garbage tote." Beneath a pile of wood scraps, they also found "a damaged computer tower, another iPhone, and ten additional firearms."
However, according to The Washington Post, prosecutors have dropped the claim about the "Deep Fakes," with the Bucks Country district attorney announcing police were "unable to confirm the video evidence was falsified."
The woman, who continues to face other charges related to the alleged harassment, lacks the technical know-how to create actual Deep Fakes, and uses an old iPhone 8 as "her main piece of computing hardware," her attorney told the newspaper.
The Star reports the man has claimed to sell iPhones and other Apple products on such pages as Bakcell Apple Store and Netsol Apple Store but has instead defrauded customers.
Have an Apple crime story for us? Email AppleInsider and tell us about it.
The Apple Store at Ross Park Mall in Pittsburgh
The latest in an occasional AppleInsider series, looking at the world of Apple-related crime.
School official fired for selling district-owned iPads out of his truck
A Texas man has been fired from his job as the chief of technology and innovation for a local school district after he was caught selling district-owned iPads.According to News 4 San Antonio, the official was caught when a local family answered a Facebook Marketplace ad and purchased multiple iPads from him in a transaction that entailed meeting him in a parking lot. Once the family's mother realized the iPads were "a type marketed to schools," she searched the man's name and discovered he worked for the school district.
She notified the TV station, which discovered a video of a school board meeting in which the same man had recommended that the district spend $483,000 on iPads and other equipment.
Police used Find My iPhone to recover Akon's car
The singer and record producer Akon had his SUV stolen while pumping gas at an Atlanta gas station in late May. But the car was later tracked down, thanks to Find My iPhone.Fox 5 reports police later recovered the automobile in Forest Park, about 20 miles away.
This is far from the first Apple-related theft involving a famous person in Atlanta. Atlanta Falcons player Hayden Hurst had his team-issued iPad and Beats headphones taken after a game in October of 2020, while Josh Brolin's iPad was stolen from his car in November. The latter theft, like the Akon incident, took place in the Buckhead neighborhood.
iPhones, MacBook and Nazi items seized from "Camp Auschwitz" Capitol riot defendant
One of the more notorious defendants from the January 6 U.S. Capitol riot had a MacBook and several iPhones seized from his possession, as well as weapons and Nazi memorabilia.According to a search warrant obtained and posted to Twitter by extremism researcher Seamus Hughes, the man, who was photographed inside the Capitol wearing a "Camp Auschwitz" hoodie, had at least four iPhones taken from his residence by the FBI, in addition to a MacBook and numerous accessories.
Other items referenced in the warrant included pictures of Adolf Hitler, a "folder titled 'Whites Only Material'" and "swastika artwork." The warrant was dated January 13.
Scoop: You may recall Robert Packer, a man wearing a Camp Auschwitz' hoodie on Jan 6th at the Capitol. It took a few calls & some USGovt court filings but I got the search warrant
Here's a rundown of Hitler, antisemitic, and white supremacy items the FBI took out of his house pic.twitter.com/FGpx0EfXsQ-- Seamus Hughes (@SeamusHughes)
Devices searched belonging to man accused of filming woman showering at hog farm
A Minnesota man has been hit with six charges alleging that he non-consensually filmed women in the shower at his hog farm in rural Minnesota. The Post Bulletin writes authorities became aware of a video shared by the man and later seized his iPhone and iPad.The man has been charged with six gross misdemeanor charges of interference with privacy, based on the six videos that were found. However, the report added that many more images were discovered that fall outside the statute of limitations.
Due to regulations related to the potential for disease contamination, the hog farm requires showering before entering and leaving.
Shots fired near Apple Store in Pittsburgh
Shots were fired following a fight at the Ross Park Mall in Pittsburgh in late May, with the incident taking place near the mall's Apple Store. WTAE reports one witness was getting her MacBook repaired at the store when she heard the shots, and Apple Store employees told customers to "run run run."A group of 30 or 40 people huddled in the back room of the store. The situation ended with two juveniles arrested and brought to juvenile detention.
Earlier in the month, a shooting at Aventura Mall in Florida also had employees and customers waiting inside the mall's nearby Apple Store for two hours, WSVN reported.
Baltimore officer hit with federal child pornography charges, after erasing iPad
A Baltimore Police SWAT Officer has been brought up on federal child pornography charges after the offending materials were found on his laptop and iCloud account.According to the Justice Department, the investigation began after the 51-year-old was caught exposing himself to a minor female. That led to searches of his devices, which discovered offending images and videos.
The DOJ also said that while the man had erased his iPad, the address of a child pornography website was found in his iCloud account.
Man charged with child pornography hastily hid iPhone, other devices
In another case of a man brought up on federal child pornography charges, prosecutors in the Western District of New York charged a 49-year-old man with possession and receipt of child pornography.In addition, per the Department of Justice, the man appears to have made clumsy attempts to hide or destroy computers and other devices.
In addition to finding an iPhone, investigators observed "power cords and computer-related equipment" in the man's living room, but no computer, and later found "damaged remains of a computer desk and computer components in a garbage tote." Beneath a pile of wood scraps, they also found "a damaged computer tower, another iPhone, and ten additional firearms."
Accused "deep fake cheerleader mom" uses "an old iPhone 8"
Back in March, a story made headlines about a Pennsylvania woman who was accused of launching a harassment campaign against her daughter's cheerleading rival. Prosecutors claimed at the time had included the use of "Deep Fake" technology.However, according to The Washington Post, prosecutors have dropped the claim about the "Deep Fakes," with the Bucks Country district attorney announcing police were "unable to confirm the video evidence was falsified."
The woman, who continues to face other charges related to the alleged harassment, lacks the technical know-how to create actual Deep Fakes, and uses an old iPhone 8 as "her main piece of computing hardware," her attorney told the newspaper.
Man in Kenya arrested for iPhone Instagram scam
A man in Kenya who runs an Instagram page under the name "Badman Anchor" has been arrested by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and is accused of running a scam.The Star reports the man has claimed to sell iPhones and other Apple products on such pages as Bakcell Apple Store and Netsol Apple Store but has instead defrauded customers.
Have an Apple crime story for us? Email AppleInsider and tell us about it.
Comments
…he sold them in the Apple Crime Blotter?
If you're ever wondering what it's like to work in education, get used to reading comments like the above every day. People with little to no knowledge of what actually happened or how specific systems work are happy to accuse and condemn not just an entire district, but school administrators in general and even an entire state.
There could be any number of reasons why the district asked the woman to drop charges. The first thing that comes to mind is they want to press much more significant charges against the perpetrator. This will require a longer investigation. The guy likely stole a lot more than 3 iPads. His theft may be in the hundreds of thousands. His theft was also not from her per se (not directly), but from the district. We will see what charges they pursue.
Concerning the comment in bold: We're talking about an elected school board, not "school administrators." School administrators are people like principals, superintendents, and the suspect in question. The board has to follow a legal process in matters like this. As the story is public, there will be no "sweeping it under the rug." In fact, they will want to make a public show of going after this guy. If they don't, they'll be out of office quickly.