If a group is planning on using their time in an unscrupulous manner to walk into a retail Apple Store and steal iPhones, would they spend countless hours scoping the raid out and planning it to perfection in the hope that they could pull off the perfect crime? Or does that sound like a little too much hard work, and would they find it much easier to just slip into Apple Genius’ uniform, walk into the store posing as an employee, and then walk out with the free iPhones?
Because that appears to be exactly the route taken by a band of prolific iPhone thieves who have so far managed to steal stock from two different New York City Apple Stores.
Earlier in the year, three individuals walked into a retail Apple Store in New York’s Upper West Side, not with the intention of perusing the stock and purchasing a new iPhone or iPod touch for themselves, but with the sole purpose of liberating stock to presumably sell on. They managed to walk out of the store with a total of 67 brand new iPhones in their possession. And yes, you guessed it, they didn’t hand over a debit or credit card in payment for those phones.
It seems almost impossible to believe that three people could conceal and leave with 67 iPhones from Apple Store without paying, but it’s now happened again.
Last week, the Apple Store in SoHo suffered a similar incident. The damage to stock wasn’t quite as bad this time around with only 19 iPhones leaving through the store’s front doors without payment being handed over, but that’s still approximately $16,000 worth of new stock gone forever without any kind of recompense heading Apple’s way. Rather than coming up with a genius plan to get away with this level of daring heist, it seems that the individual in the second case simply donned Apple Genius uniform, walked into the store to drawers where the brand-new, uncooked iPhones are kept, and then walked out with ill-gotten gains.
Police involved in the case is investigating two individual robberies at two different New York City Apple Stores, and as you might expect, have linked the two cases mentioned above together believing that it’s likely the same group responsible for both of the hits.
It doesn’t exactly appear to be overly difficult to pose as an Apple employee with the purpose of trying to achieve a malicious outcome. Maybe Angela Ahrendts, Apple’s Senior VP of Retail, will need to take a look at her in-store policies and dress codes.
(via: Gizmodo)
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