NBA gambling indictment included evidence from iCloud, Jeffrey Epstein's emails were sent from his iPads, and Find My iPhone led to a carjacking arrest in this week's Apple Crime Blotter.
The latest in an occasional AppleInsider series, looking at the world of Apple-related crime.
Stolen Apple product haul worth $320,000 is recovered
More than $300,000 worth of Apple products were stolen from a tractor-trailer in Cumberland County, Pa., but were later recovered, and the participants arrested.
According to ABC 27, six people approached and opened the trailer and took the items, which consisted of "mostly iPads" that were headed to a warehouse.
The alleged thieves left in two vehicles. One was stopped on the Pennsylvania Turnpike by Pennsylvania State Police, while the other was stopped by New Jersey State Police.
All six men, who police say were part of an "organized cargo theft ring" that focused on Apple products, have been charged with theft and conspiracy. The report said that both vehicles were already being tracked, since "they were used together in prior thefts."
iCloud evidence used in NBA gambling indictment
A high-profile federal indictment that alleges an NBA Hall of Famer was part of a conspiracy with the Mafia to rig high-stakes poker games made use of evidence pulled from iCloud, NBC News reported.
The technology used in the alleged scheme, which federal prosecutors say involved retired NBA star and coach Chauncey Billups, included "card-reading contact lenses, X-ray poker tables, trays of poker chips that read cards, hacked shuffling machines that predict hands."
X-ray tables and card-reading contact lenses: The tech allegedly used in a poker scheme involving ex-NBA players is straight out of a movie. https://t.co/hYZSPhn860
— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 26, 2025
The photographs came from the iCloud accounts of Robert Stroud and Shane Hennen, who are among the defendants in what prosecutors call "Operation Royal Flush."
A separate indictment announced the same day, with some of the same defendants, alleged a conspiracy between one NBA player and gamblers.
Find my iPhone leads to arrest for carjacking in Boston
A man has been arrested for attempting to choke an Uber driver during an attempted carjacking in downtown Boston, with Find My iPhone to thank.
According to Boston 25 News, which cited the Boston Police Department, the victim was driving an Uber when her passenger wrapped a cord around the driver's neck. The driver managed to escape the vehicle, with the assailant driving away in her car.
The driver's phone had been left in the car, which allowed her husband to follow the signal, at which point police arrested the man.
The man has been charged with carjacking, strangulation or suffocation, assault with a dangerous weapon, and receiving a stolen motor vehicle.
Newly released Jeffrey Epstein emails came from iPads
A Congressional committee on November 12 released a large cache of emails to and from powerful people by the notorious late convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Many of theemails from Epstein have "sent from my iPad" listed at the bottom, and one of the email addresses used by Epstein was "[email protected]."
According to journalist Jacob Shamsian of Business Insider, "every single one" of Epstein's emails was sent from an iPad.
"The FBI literally seized 6 iPads from his Manhattan mansion," Shamsian wrote on X, citing his earlier reporting. "He just had them scattered around to do emails."
Numerous iPhones stolen from Philadelphia concerts ended up in China
Several recent concerts in Philadelphia have seen large-scale thefts of iPhones, with the concertgoers later following the locations with Find My iPhone and discovered their iPhones were in China.
The Philadelphia Inquirer explains that one show had more than 100 iPhones taken. Some of the theft victims noticed that their phones had first popped up in New York and New Jersey, before later ending up in Hong Kong or Shenzhen.
Law enforcement told the newspaper that there is "not much that can be done once a phone is stolen."
Man sought who opened fraudulent Verizon accounts to buy iPhones
The Irvine Police Department in California is looking for a man who they say used fraudulent information to order two iPhones.
According to New Santa Ana, the man could face charges of fraud, identity theft, and wire fraud.
Anyone with information is asked to contact a certain police official.
Man accused of iPad theft strikes Connecticut State Police cruiser
Connecticut State Police troopers were attempting to stop an accused iPad thief and following a ping when their police cruiser was struck.
WHNH reports the vehicle fled and troopers made further pursuit, chasing the suspect both by car and later on foot. He was ultimately arrested.
Man arrested in upstate New York iPad theft
A man in Geneva, N.Y., was arrested November 5 after police say they saw him holding a stolen iPad, near where it was taken.
According to Finger Lakes 1, the iPad had been among the valuable items stolen from a car. The 36-year-old man was found holding the stolen iPad, "in plain view," as well as narcotics and other stolen items.
He was charged with criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree.
FedEx employee accused of stealing 26 Apple products
A 37-year-old man who worked at a FedEx facility in Pennsylvania has been accused of stealing 26 Apple products, worth a total of $12,974.
The stolen items, per ABC 27, included 13 Apple Watches, six iPhones, five Apple Watch bands, and a MacBook.
He was caught, police said, after the warehouse noticed items were missing, and the man was "seen on camera pilfering through a shipment." When confronted, 10 of the Apple Watch boxes were found in his yellow safety vest.
After he was fired, the man agreed to meet his employers at a Bass Pro Shop, where he told them some of the stolen items were in a backpack on one side of the building. He faces a felony charge of theft.
AirTag leads to arrest for stealing an e-bike
A young man in Huntington Beach, Calif., had his e-bike stolen while he was surfing. However, according to the Huntington Beach Police Department, the e-bike was equipped with an AirTag, which allowed an officer to track it to Anaheim.
The e-bike was recovered, and the alleged thief and arrested and charged with theft.