Apple Supply Manager Charged with Leaking Insider Secrets

By Susan J. Campbell

TMCnet Contributing Editor

 

Just how valuable is inside Apple information on the global market? Paul Shin Devine knows the answer to that question as the former global supply manager for the iPhone (News - Alert) creator allegedly received more than one million in kickbacks from Asian companies in exchange for confidential information. This story was reported in a recent article posted on The Register.

A suit has been filed by Apple (News - Alert) against Devine and cites his indictment for wire fraud and money laundering, among other illegal acts. According to court documents, Devine was paid the money in exchange for inside information about the iPhone and the iPod, giving the companies involved the upper hand in negotiations with Apple.

The exact information that was disclosed is unclear as the court documents do not specify what was shared. It is clear, however, that the information was considered valuable to those who paid handsomely for it. Any company hoping to negotiate with Apple would benefit from information about upcoming models, competing bids, the amount Apple expected to pay for certain items, etc.

A Wall Street Journal report named three of the companies involved with the suit, including Kaedar Electronics Co, Cresyn (News - Alert) Co and Jin Li Mould Manufacturing Pte, of China, South Korea and Singapore respectively.

Andrew Ang is also named in the suit as he is accused of aiding Devine in the process, working as a confederate for Devine and someone who worked for Jin Li in the past. Ang and Devine have been accused of working together to route money around the world in an attempt to hide its source. Their attempts proved to be fruitless and Devine is now in the custody of U.S. Marshals. Ang's location is not currently known.

In a Bloomberg (News - Alert) article, a statement was captured by Cresyn . The company explained that they  had paid an Apple employee for consultancy services, but that this was "limited to the trends in the U.S. market" and that the firm "neither requested nor received any information regarding technologies."

If this statement is true, Devine still faces a conflict of interest. Regardless, Apple doesn't buy the argument and we're likely to see additional action on this case.

In other Apple news, it was announced last week Mark Papermaster, Apple's executive in charge of the iPhone, has left the company following a series of problems with the wildly popular device, according to a report from FoxNews.com.

The report added that Papermaster also had what has been described as a "falling out" with Apple CEO Steve Jobs (News - Alert).