Crime blotter: Capitol riot defendant who feared iCloud exposure pleads guilty

In the latest Apple Crime Blotter, siblings in a Stanford MacBook theft ring plead guilty, a man pulls a knife while stealing a MacBook, and iCloud evidence is used in meth prosecution.

The latest in an occasional AppleInsider series, looking at the world of Apple-related crime.

Capitol riot defendant who threw iPhone in the ocean pleads guilty

A man accused of seditious conspiracy in connection with the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot has pled guilty. It was a case in which evidence from the man's iCloud account was used against him.

According to the Justice Department, the 45-year-old North Carolina man was associated with the Oath Keepers and faces up to 20 years in prison each for seditious conspiracy and obstruction of an official proceeding.

DOJ also said that the man "took steps to conceal incriminating evidence of his participation in the conspiracy from being stored in his Apple iCloud account," and that within weeks of the riot, had "discarded his only cell phone into the Atlantic Ocean to prevent law enforcement from discovering incriminating evidence about his participation in this conspiracy."

Man pulled a knife while stealing MacBooks from Best Buy in New York

A man was caught on video stealing a pair of MacBook laptops from a Best Buy in Midtown Manhattan on April 23. NBC New York reports a store employee told him to stop, at which point he pulled a knife and said "try me."

The employee, per the report, "backed off in fear of his safety."

Siblings get years in prison for stolen MacBook scam

A brother and sister, one of whom worked at Stanford University, pled guilty in 2021 to a scheme in which they ordered MacBooks through the university and sold them.

The two were sentenced on April 18, the Department of Justice announced. Patricia Castaneda received 33 months in prison, while her brother Eric Castaneda got 18 months.

They were also ordered to pay restitution of, respectively, $4,077,832 and $2,283,155.

Apple gave authorities iCloud evidence in "Adderall123" case

Two men have been arrested for selling methamphetamine on the Dark Web under the name "Adderall123"- and Apple granted law enforcement access to the iCloud account of one of the accused.

According to Dark Net Live, the evidence included incriminating iMessages as well as a video of the defendant "taking orange circular pills from a large clear zip-lock bag and sliding the pills onto a white piece of paper."

FedEx employee charged with stealing package with iPads

An employee of FedEx in Alabama was hit with charges in late April of first-degree theft after police say he stole a package with iPads. Fox 10 says the man was booked in jail and later released.

Millions of dollars of stolen property in accused thief's possession included iPad

A 24-year-old accused of theft in San Jose has been arrested and accused of holding storage lockers with millions of dollars in stolen property.

According to SFist, the man has been charged with grand theft, burglary, sale of stolen property and illegal weapons possession. This happened after police found the iPad, which they say was stolen from the car of a teacher in Palo Alto, as well as music equipment, go-karts, and more than a million dollars of stolen medical equipment.

Man arrested for stealing MacBooks from church

A man in Ohio was arrested in late April after he was caught on surveillance cameras stealing from a local church. News 5 Cleveland reports the stolen items included seven guitars and three MacBooks, as well as three Google Nest devices.

The suspect was charged with breaking and entering, theft, vandalism, and safe cracking.

Police suspect man stole woman's iPhone from casino slot machine

Police have announced that a 53-year-old man is considered a suspect after they connected him to the theft of an iPhone 12 from a slot machine at Valley Forge Casino Hotel in Pennsylvania.

According to the Sanatoga Post, the man was caught, presumably on video surveillance, by local police working in the casino.

Woman arrested for robbing T-Mobile store

A woman was arrested after an April 25 incident in which police say she robbed a T-Mobile store in Seattle and showed a gun when she was confronted.

KIRO explains the woman brought wire cutters with her and attempted to cut the wires attaching iPhones to the display. When confronted by a store employee, the woman lifted her shirt to reveal a gun.

She left the store and then returned, cutting the cables to both a Samsung S22 Ultra phone and multiple smartwatches. She later escaped, in a car that is suspected as stolen and has also been linked to another robbery earlier that day.