Former Apple employee, Dhirendra Prasad, has been sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay back over $19 million in restitution for stealing around $17 million from the tech giant through mail and wire fraud schemes. Prasad worked for Apple between 2008 and 2018, mostly as a buyer in the company’s global service supply chain, purchasing parts and services from vendors.
Prasad admitted to siphoning money from his employer around 2011 by accepting kickbacks, stealing parts, inflating invoices, and fraudulently charging Apple for goods that were never delivered. He also admitted to conspiring on these activities with the owners of two vendor companies, who have been charged in separate cases.
The United States Department of Justice claims that Prasad exploited his position as a buyer and used insider information regarding Apple’s fraud detection techniques to avoid discovery. Prasad pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. In addition to his three-year prison sentence, Prasad has agreed to pay back $19,270,683 in restitutions, $17,398,104 to Apple, and $1,872,579 to the IRS for the tax he owes. He has also been ordered to forfeit over $5.4 million worth of assets that the government has already seized and pay an additional $8.1 million in cash.
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