Overview

• Yushan Lin, 31, and Shuyi Xing, 35, of Corona, California, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, and Xing also admitted a separate money‑laundering conspiracy tied to more than $1 million from elder‑fraud schemes.
• Prosecutors say the group smuggled counterfeit iPhones, iPads, and other devices from China and used real customers’ serial and identification numbers to obtain genuine replacements through Apple warranty and AppleCare+ programs.
• The broader conspiracy involved more than 27,645 attempted returns and caused at least $16,239,254 in losses to Apple, while Lin and Xing were linked to at least 1,584 devices and $1,116,544 in losses.
• Participants made repeated returns at Apple stores across Southern California and used dozens of rented UPS Store mailboxes to receive shipments and route genuine replacements to resellers in the U.S. and China.
• Lin and Xing are the last of six defendants to plead guilty in the case; U.S. District Judge André Birotte Jr. set their Dec. 10 sentencings, with Lin facing up to 20 years and Xing up to 40 years, following an HSI and IRS‑CI investigation supported by the Postal Inspection Service and LAPD.