A hearing at Dublin District Court on Saturday was told that Gardaí believed Chengwen Guo was a 'central figure in the complex deception that was undertaken to defraud Apple'
A Dublin-based Chinese businessman has been accused of money laundering connected to an alleged international €9.7m "zombie" iPhone fraud.
The father of four, who was believed to be running a chain of phone shops since moving to Ireland in 2012, allegedly had €143,245 at his home, €20,700 at Murray Mobile, 15 Main Street, Dundrum, D14, and €6,515 in a 2019-reg Audi Q2 car at Shanowen Road, D9. The court heard fake Chinese Apple phones were dispatched to Ireland and swapped for genuine iPhones sent to China.
"It was suspected that an international organised crime gang are involved in procuring counterfeit products and sending them to members of the OCG in Ireland for processing," Detective Garda Cadogan said. He claimed that in July 2021, Customs officers intercepted a package "full with counterfeit items and Apple products" destined for the Murray Mobile phone company at 15 Main Street, Dundrum.
This activity involved the phones being brought to a specific phone repair shop. Some 10,685 were submitted for repair from 2019 to 2021, and 9,761 of them have been allegedly confirmed to be counterfeit zombie phones. It was estimated that the accused and his associates made approximately €9.7 million from executing this fraud.
Judge McHugh heard that the investigation team would recommend that the Director of Public Prosecutions bring further serious charges under organised crime legislation and for trademark, money laundering and theft offences. The detective said the businessman travelled to China numerous times a year and had family and friends there, but agreed with the solicitor that the majority of his accounts have now been frozen. Pleading for bail, Mr Ruane said his client would surrender his passport, which is currently in the UK embassy, because he had applied for a visa to visit his adult daughter, who is studying in the UK.
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Businessman held on money laundering charges connected to €9.7m ‘zombie’ iPhone fraudChengwen Guo (41) of Parnell Street, Dublin 1, appeared at Dublin District Court on Saturday
Read more »
Man accused of assaulting woman in her Dublin homeMatthias Kelly, 41, appeared at Dublin District Court today
Read more »
Woman alleges ex-partner ‘bombarded’ her with ‘very vile’ sexually explicit texts and photosMan once sent woman 50 text messages in five hours, Dublin District Family Court hears
Read more »
From Dublin to Lublin: Council announces two new Portal connectionsThe Dublin Portal will now also broadcast two additional European cities, Dublin City Council has announced.
Read more »
Legendary RTÉ newsreader (88) rolls back years to win coveted golfing prizeSean Duignan won the Dublin Journalists Captain's Prize at Royal Dublin with a huge score
Read more »
Legendary RTÉ newsreader (87) rolls back years to win coveted golfing prizeSean Duignan won the Dublin Journalists Captain's Prize at Royal Dublin with a huge score
Read more »