Gizmodo faces visit from cops over 'found' iPhone
By Bill Ray
Posted 26th April 2010 10:04 GMTA tech blog that paid five grand to the finder of a prototype iPhone is under police investigation, as it seems buying found property is against the law. Gizmodo paid $5,000 to the chap who found a next-generation iPhone in a bar, and the blog made merry with the device before returning it to Apple - after forcing Cupertino to admit that the prototype was genuine, in writing. But it seems that paying for found property is illegal in California, and now CNET reports that the police are taking an interest.
The prototype iPhone was left in a bar by an engineer who was field-testing it; with the launch scheduled for June it makes sense that Apple would do some field testing. An unknown person picked it up and played with it briefly before Apple remotely pulled the plug. That person apparently tried to return the handset to Apple, but the support desk staff (who don't have access to the goings on in the R&D department) told him it was just Chinese knock-off and not to bother them with it.
So he sold it to Gizmodo, who spent a week taking it apart and then posted the details, causing their servers to melt down as everyone scrambled to get sight of the device (sight only, the software was long gone).
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Lost iPhone prototype spurs police probe
April 23, 2010 12:11 PM PDT
by Greg Sandoval and Declan McCullaghSilicon Valley police are investigating what appears to be a lost Apple iPhone prototype purchased by a gadget blog, a transaction that may have violated criminal laws, a law enforcement official told CNET on Friday.
Apple has spoken to local police about the incident and the investigation is believed to be headed by a computer crime task force led by the Santa Clara County district attorney's office, the source said. Apple's Cupertino headquarters is in Santa Clara County, about 40 miles south of San Francisco.b
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The purpose of an investigation is to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to file criminal charges. Spokesmen for Santa Clara County and San Mateo County--home to the Redwood City bar--declined to comment.
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Under a California law dating back to 1872, any person who finds lost property and knows who the owner is likely to be but "appropriates such property to his own use" is guilty of theft. If the value of the property exceeds $400, more serious charges of grand theft can be filed. In addition, a second state law says that any person who knowingly receives property that has been obtained illegally can be imprisoned for up to one year.
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The California law ...
CAL. PEN. CODE § 485 : California Code - Section 485
One who finds lost property under circumstances which give him knowledge of or means of inquiry as to the true owner, and who appropriates such property to his own use, or to the use of another person not entitled thereto, without first making reasonable and just efforts to find the owner and to restore the property to him, is guilty of theft.
OK. Thanks for all the info. I now know that buying and selling a known lost object is illegal. I seriously did not know that. The finder and Gizmondo were stupid to sell openly. If they’d known about the law, they could have arranged a “for free gift” of the object, if you know what I mean.
“That person apparently tried to return the handset to Apple...”
OK, so if the guy who found it tried to return it to Apple and Apple said “nope, not ours”, how is he guilty of violating the California law that says you can’t sell found property that you know belongs to someone else?