A California grand jury has indicted Apple's head of global security on charges that he attempted to obtain firearm (CCW) licenses from Santa Clara County officials by agreeing to bribe them with iPads.
This news was announced via a press release issued by the Santa Clara County's District Attorney's office. It is alleged that Thomas Moyer agreed to trade 200 iPads (with a value of around $70,000) for four concealed firearms licenses for Apple employees. That deal was allegedly agreed to after Capt. James Jensen and Undersheriff Rick Sung of the local sheriff's office requested a bribe for the permits.
A local insurance broker was also named in the indictment.
“In the case of four CCW licenses withheld from Apple employees, Undersheriff Sung and Cpt. Jensen managed to extract from Thomas Moyer a promise that Apple would donate iPads to the Sheriff’s Office,” attorney general Jeff Rosen wrote in the release.
The charges were filed following a two-year investigation.
He added that "Undersheriff Sung and Captain Jensen treated CCW licenses as commodities and found willing buyers. Bribe seekers should be reported to the District Attorney’s Office, not rewarded with compliance.”
Rosen's office says the iPads were never delivered because Moyer and Sung learned in August 2019 that the DA was executing a search warrant to seize all CCW license records.
As for the usual process to procure such a license, that was outlined in the press release thusly:
The various fees required to obtain a CCW license generally total between $200 and $400. Under state law, it is a crime to carry a concealed firearm without a CCW license. Although state law requires that the applicant demonstrate “good cause” for the license, in addition to completing a firearms course and having good moral character, the sheriff has broad discretion in determining who should qualify.
In a statement sent to The Verge, Moyer's attorney claimed that his client was innocent. He further maintained that Moyer was "collateral damage" in a quarrel between the sheriff's and DA's office.
On the same note, Apple claims to have investigated the issue and found no wrongdoing on the part of Moyer.
Bloomberg News reports that the head of security has been with Apple for nearly 15 years. Since November 2018, he's served in his current role. Notably, in 2018 he issued a memo to Apple employees warning them that leaking info to the press can "become part of your personal and professional identity forever.”
An arraignment will be held on January 11, 2021. If the defendants involved are convicted, they could receive prison time.
