Ex-Apple employee accused of defrauding the company of $10 million
A former Apple employee in the USA is facing federal charges after allegedly defrauding the company of millions of dollars over several years.
As reported by Reuters, Dhirendra Prasad has been charged with five offences, including conspiracy to conduct wire and mail fraud. He also faces two counts of conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to a court filing Friday.
Prasad worked as a buyer at Apple's Global Service Supply Chain between December 2008 and December 2018, where he was responsible for purchasing goods for the company.
Prasad's job was to negotiate and place orders with suppliers. Apple made payments based on invoices he uploaded to Apple's purchasing system
According to prosecutors, Prasad participated in several separate schemes to cheat his employer, including stealing components, receiving kickbacks, and causing the company to pay for things it never received.
The court documents allege that Apple suffered damages of more than $10 million due to Prasad's actions.
He is also accused of evading taxes.
Two owners of Apple suppliers, accused of conspiring with Prasad on similar fraud schemes, pled guilty to related charges in December.
Prasad is set to appear in US District Court in San Jose on Thursday this week.
Each of the fraud, tax evasion and money laundering charges has a possible punishment ranging from five to 20 years in prison.
The court has already allowed the seizure of assets and bank accounts worth around $5 million linked to Prasad's alleged offences. The US Attorney's Office said the government is seeking to keep those assets as proceeds of crime.
This is far from the first run-in Apple employees have had with the law.
Apple filed another lawsuit against a former employee last year, alleging that he stole and leaked company trade secrets to a journalist to get positive press coverage for his start-up.
In 2020, Apple's head of global security and two members of the Santa Clara County Sheriff's office were indicted for their role in an alleged bribery scheme, allegedly offering free iPads to law enforcement officers in exchange for special gun permits for Apple employees.