Crime blotter: Apple Store thefts in Illinois, California and Norwich

In the latest Apple Crime Blotter, a USPS employee is sentenced for taking iPads, Find My iPhone recovers stolen iPhones from a music festival, and counterfeit money used in iPhone sale leads to arrests.

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

Chicago-area Apple Store is robbed

Police are looking for five people who they say carried out a theft of the Apple Store in Orland Park, Ill. According to Fox 32, the theft claimed about five iPhones and two Apple Watches, and police say the same crew is suspected in a similar recent theft in Oak Brook.

The video of the incident was obtained and posted by local police:

Apple Store theft in California

Meanwhile, in California, there was another Apple Store theft at the end of October. Thieves struck the Apple Store in Monterey, Calif., as three men in black hoodies stole $60,000 worth of items, reports KSBW.

The accused thieves then led police on a high school chase, in a white Chevy Malibu with stolen plates.

Two charged in Apple Store theft in U.K.

Two men were charged for stealing 9,000 pounds (about $10,600) worth of iPhones from the Apple Store in Norwich, in the U.K. According to the Norfolk Constabulary, a bystander was "assaulted and suffered cuts and bruises to the face whilst trying to intervene."

Gun recovered from the search for stolen AirPods

A California woman had her AirPods stolen, and after she tracked them, the signal led law enforcement to search the property where they were found. There, police found and recovered not only the AirPods but also a stolen gun.

Signal SCV reports the suspect was booked on suspicion of receiving stolen property and weapons violations.

USPS employee sentenced for stealing iPads

A Massachusetts man who worked for the Postal Service and who stands accused of stealing two iPads and other items from the mail has pled guilty to one count of theft of mail by an employee of the U.S. Postal Service.

According to Mass Live, among the items stolen were two iPads that had been delivered to Harvard University, as well as cash.

Find My iPhone helps track down more than 90 iPhones stolen from music festival

Music festivals are often plagued by thieves looking to steal smartphones, and this year's Escape Music Festival in California was no exception. Nearly 100 phones were taken, often by pickpockets.

NBC Los Angeles explains how one of the theft victims used Find My iPhone to track his phone, and ended up finding it.

The report said that the man and his friend drove 60 miles, noticed the phone was no longer moving, and then called the police. The Downey Police Department found 92 phones in a pair of garbage bags.

Arrests made after iPhone is sold for fake money

Police in North Carolina arrested three people for armed robbery after they claimed they were offering an iPhone for sale and bought it with counterfeit money. According to CBS 17, the sale was arranged through Facebook Marketplace, and after the seller complained that the money was fake, the counterparts pulled a gun and ran.

The Morrisville Police set up a sting soon after and arrested the men as soon as they arrived, and they had a stolen MacBook in their possession as well.

The suspects were charged with many crimes, including armed robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, possession of a stolen firearm, assault by pointing a gun, possession of a counterfeit instrument, obtaining property by false pretense, possession of a firearm by a felon, and possession of marijuana.

iPhone 14 Pro Max stolen from a man before he could pick it up

A man who lives in Chandler's Ford in the U.K. ordered an iPhone 14 Pro Max and went to pick it up from a local store, only to findthat it had been stolen before he could even pick it up.

According to The Daily Echo, the man was told by the store that they could do nothing about the stolen phone, and when he called Apple, they said they couldn't do anything unless they received a printed hard copy of a police report, which could take months.

Ultimately, Apple agreed to supply him with a replacement.

iPad stolen from library in California

Police in Gilroy, Calif., are looking for a man who they say stole an iPad from the town's library and sold it online. KRON reports the iPad was stolen from the library at 3 a.m. and sold outside a Starbucks about seven hours later.

The man who bought the iPad did not know it was stolen, the report said.