Trio Pleads Guilty to Smuggling Counterfeit iPhones, iPads

Three members of a conspiracy to smuggle counterfeit Apple iPhones, iPads and iPods from China pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Newark, New Jersey, DOJ announced. It said Andreina Becerra, Roberto Volpe and Rosario La Marca conspired to smuggle into the U.S. more than 40,000 counterfeit electronic devices from 2009 to 2014. They shipped the devices separately from the labels bearing the counterfeit Apple trademarks for later assembly to avoid detection by Customs and Border Protection officials, DOJ said. Becerra, Volpe and La Marca each pleaded guilty to counts of conspiracy, trafficking in counterfeit goods, smuggling and structuring of financial transactions.