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http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/DigitalOne/Story/A1Story20100816-232212.html
Mon, Aug 16, 2010
my paper
BY ANNABELLE LIANG
A SINGAPORE supplier of iPhone and iPod accessories has been named in court documents for an American lawsuit filed by Apple alleging fraud, money laundering and bribery.
Andrew Ang, together with American Paul Shin Devine, an Apple global supply manager, was mentioned in a 23-count federal grand-jury indictment in an investigation by both the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), said San Jose Mercury News last Friday.
Ang, in his mid-30s, was named in a Wall Street Journal report last Saturday as being an employee of Jin Li Mould Manufacturing, a company based in Woodlands. On its website, Jin Li says it makes moulds for consumer electronics and precision tools for clients such as Apple, Dyson and Hewlett-Packard.
Ang helped broker deals with Jin Li as well as others, said WSJ. When contacted by my paper yesterday, the company's operations manager, Mr S. L. Seow, said: "He has not been with our company for over a year and we are unaware of his whereabouts."
He added that Ang had worked as a manager but later quit his job. According to Mr Seow, Ang told his colleagues that he was leaving for a better job and that he would "not be in the same line" as them.
Devine was arrested and accused of accepting more than US$1 million (S$1.4 million) in bribes from six Asian suppliers of iPhone and iPod accessories, including those from China, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore.
He was sued by Apple, which is based in Cupertino, California, in a separate civil suit. In exchange for the money, Devine allegedly provided confidential information to Apple suppliers in Asia, who then used the information to negotiate favourable contracts with Apple.
Code words like "sample" were used to refer to the payments by Asian suppliers to avoid suspicion from his Apple co-workers. Devine also reportedly opened bank accounts in several Asian countries, including accounts in his wife's name, to receive bribes.
The indictment stated that he had also collected the money directly from suppliers when he traveled to Asia.
He allegedly routed the money received from suppliers to a bogus front-end company called CPK Engineering to disguise bribery payments from Asian suppliers. According to the IRS, he is being held by the US Marshals Service. He is scheduled to appear in the federal court in San Jose this afternoon.
As for Ang, IRS agent Arlette Lee declined to comment on his whereabouts. In a statement, Apple spokesman Steve Dowling said: "Apple is committed to the highest ethical standards in the way we do business. We have zero tolerance for dishonest behaviour inside or outside the company."
Here in Singapore, seven Apple resellers and retailers that my paper contacted were not affected by the recent events so far. They also said they did not have or know a supplier with the name of Andrew Ang.
A spokesman for an Apple reseller, Juzz1, at Parkway Parade, said: "No customers have been approaching us about the issue. I don't think that we will be affected, as we don't have such a supplier on our list."
Apple could not be reached at press time for a comment on the issue.
[email protected]
Mon, Aug 16, 2010
my paper
BY ANNABELLE LIANG
A SINGAPORE supplier of iPhone and iPod accessories has been named in court documents for an American lawsuit filed by Apple alleging fraud, money laundering and bribery.
Andrew Ang, together with American Paul Shin Devine, an Apple global supply manager, was mentioned in a 23-count federal grand-jury indictment in an investigation by both the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), said San Jose Mercury News last Friday.
Ang, in his mid-30s, was named in a Wall Street Journal report last Saturday as being an employee of Jin Li Mould Manufacturing, a company based in Woodlands. On its website, Jin Li says it makes moulds for consumer electronics and precision tools for clients such as Apple, Dyson and Hewlett-Packard.
Ang helped broker deals with Jin Li as well as others, said WSJ. When contacted by my paper yesterday, the company's operations manager, Mr S. L. Seow, said: "He has not been with our company for over a year and we are unaware of his whereabouts."
He added that Ang had worked as a manager but later quit his job. According to Mr Seow, Ang told his colleagues that he was leaving for a better job and that he would "not be in the same line" as them.
Devine was arrested and accused of accepting more than US$1 million (S$1.4 million) in bribes from six Asian suppliers of iPhone and iPod accessories, including those from China, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore.
He was sued by Apple, which is based in Cupertino, California, in a separate civil suit. In exchange for the money, Devine allegedly provided confidential information to Apple suppliers in Asia, who then used the information to negotiate favourable contracts with Apple.
Code words like "sample" were used to refer to the payments by Asian suppliers to avoid suspicion from his Apple co-workers. Devine also reportedly opened bank accounts in several Asian countries, including accounts in his wife's name, to receive bribes.
The indictment stated that he had also collected the money directly from suppliers when he traveled to Asia.
He allegedly routed the money received from suppliers to a bogus front-end company called CPK Engineering to disguise bribery payments from Asian suppliers. According to the IRS, he is being held by the US Marshals Service. He is scheduled to appear in the federal court in San Jose this afternoon.
As for Ang, IRS agent Arlette Lee declined to comment on his whereabouts. In a statement, Apple spokesman Steve Dowling said: "Apple is committed to the highest ethical standards in the way we do business. We have zero tolerance for dishonest behaviour inside or outside the company."
Here in Singapore, seven Apple resellers and retailers that my paper contacted were not affected by the recent events so far. They also said they did not have or know a supplier with the name of Andrew Ang.
A spokesman for an Apple reseller, Juzz1, at Parkway Parade, said: "No customers have been approaching us about the issue. I don't think that we will be affected, as we don't have such a supplier on our list."
Apple could not be reached at press time for a comment on the issue.
[email protected]
