British police have arrested nine men involved in a major iPhone scam, in morning raids across London, Essex, Middlesborough and the midlands this week.
The gang is suspected of using stolen iPhones to run a complex scam involving premium-rate phone lines.
Eight men and one woman have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud, in a scheme that involved buying up iPhones using false identities and then calling expensive premium-rate numbers owned by the fraudsters that charge up to £10 a minute.
City of London police have seized iPhones, hundreds of SIM cards and thousands of pounds in cash from homes in Southend, Walsall, central Birmingham, Middlesbrough, and Forest Gate and Southall in London.
Identity fraud
O2 had a total of £1.2m stolen through premium phone lines throughout July, with police claiming that a West African gang bought the phones from high street stores using false identities.
Detective Superintendent Bob Wishart said that, working closely with operators such as O2, the police had uncovered "a highly sophisticated criminal network."
DS Wishart added: "Each month more SIM cards were being used to make more phone calls to premium-rate lines at more expense to the network provider. The criminal exploitation of the latest consumer technology is a recurring theme of our work.
"Our collaboration with O2 on this investigation highlights the benefits of how the private sector can work with the police to proactively target common threats to our communities."
Via The Guardian
Your comments (5) Click to add a new comment
gabethepilot
August 19th 2010
5. Buying iPhones with fake id's would mean they'd get a decent contract, with a high credit limit. This way they could make more calls to the premium lines, grossing more cash from them as they pay out on a monthly basis, and then charge the mobile phone company.
But of course, then they don't pay the mobile phone company. The mobile company ends up footing the bill.
If this was done at the same time with enough phones, probably bought in the same area, and all were using the same numbers, it wouldn't be difficult to spot.
Of course, all the phone shops they bought the phones from, would have CCTVs.... not rocket science exactly, even though plod would like to think so.
Alert a moderator
phila
August 19th 2010
4. The iPhone is the most expensive phone on the market, so stealing them adds to the profit, since you can sell them on after.
When I first read the headline though I thought "iPhone Scam Gang? Isn't that the Apple board for over-charging so much?" ;-)
Alert a moderator
cheysuli
August 19th 2010
3. They probably used iPhones, because they could resell the handsets for a profit too. People are not going to look too closely if an iPhone is going cheap.
Question is, why aren't these people deported? Take their fingerprints, deport them and never let them back! It's not rocket science.
Alert a moderator
awire
August 19th 2010
2. if you're gonna do it, do it in style i assume. not that i agree with what they did. i say deport their "behinds".
Alert a moderator
mrdjmo
August 19th 2010
1. Surely the could have used any phone??
Alert a moderator
Tell us what you think
You need to Log in or register to post comments