LOS ANGELES
Two Chinese nationals living in Riverside County pleaded guilty Wednesday to a massive counterfeit Apple device scheme that defrauded the tech giant out of more than $16 million, federal officials stated.
The Defendants
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Yushan Lin, 31, and Shuyi Xing, 35, both of Corona, admitted to conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud.
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Xing also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder more than $1 million tied to elder fraud schemes.
They are the last of six defendants charged in the case to plead guilty. Others include ringleader Wenhui Huang, 40, of Chino Hills; Yang Song, 38, of Corona; Junwei Jiang, 38, of East Los Angeles; and Zhengxuan Hu, 27, of Alhambra.
The Scheme
From 2015 to 2024, officials stated that conspirators in China smuggled counterfeit iPhones, iPads, and other devices into the U.S. The fakes carried stolen serial and ID numbers from real Apple products still under warranty.
The defendants returned the counterfeits at Apple Stores across Southern California—including Beverly Hills, Irvine, Pasadena, and South Coast Plaza—falsely claiming they were defective.
Apple employees replaced or repaired them with genuine devices, which the conspirators then shipped back to China for resale at a profit.
The group attempted to return more than 27,600 counterfeit devices, costing Apple over $16.2 million. Lin and Xing alone caused more than $1.1 million in losses.
Next Steps
U.S. District Judge André Birotte Jr. set sentencing for December 10. Lin faces up to 20 years in prison, while Xing faces up to 40 years.
The investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations and IRS Criminal Investigation, with assistance from the Postal Inspection Service and LAPD.