Former Apple Employee Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison And Mandatory To Pay Compensation Of IDR 254.4 Billion For Cheating

Apple is harmed by its employees. (photo: ianns)

JAKARTA - Former Apple employee was sentenced to three years in prison and had to pay more than US$19 million (Rp284.3 billion) in restitution after being proven to have stolen around US$17 million (Rp254.4 billion) from the technology company through a fraudulent scheme via mail and wire.

Dhirendra Prasad, 55, was initially indicted in March 2022 and later pleaded guilty to a conspiracy to deceive Apple and tax-related crimes in November last year.

Prasad worked at the company between 2008 and 2018, mostly as a buyer in Apple's global service supply chain, buying spare parts and services from vendors.

In his confession agreement, Prasad admitted he began moving money from his company around 2011 by accepting bribes, stealing parts, raising invoices, and defrauding Apple by charging fees for items never received.

He also admitted to tax evasion for the proceeds of his scheme and conspiring in this activity with the owners of two vendor companies that have been charged in separate cases.

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) stated that Prasad took advantage of his position as a buyer and used internal information about Apple's fraudulent detection techniques to try to hide his criminal activities.

"With his presence at Apple, Prasad is given substantial authority to make autonomous decisions for the benefit of his employer," DOJ said in a statement published on Wednesday, April 26, quoted by The Verge.

"Prasad betrayed this trust and abused his power to enrich himself at the cost of his employer - while receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation from Apple in the form of salaries and bonuses," added DOJ.

Prasad pleaded guilty to a conspiracy to commit fraud through letters and wires and a conspiracy to deceive the United States.

In addition to a three-year prison sentence, Prasad has agreed to pay back US$19,270,683 in restitution - 17,398,104 US dollars to Apple and US$1,872,579 to the IRS for taxes he has to pay. He was also sentenced to confiscate more than US$5.4 million (Rp80.8 billion) assets that have been confiscated by the government and pay an additional US$8.1 million (Rp121.2 billion) in cash.