Courts / Dublin / Report
Irish rep of transnational crime gang jailed over €10m 'zombie' iPhone fraud
Summary
Chengwen Guo, the Irish representative of a transnational crime organisation, was jailed for seven years for his involvement in a €10 million 'zombie' iPhone fraud. Guo owned several mobile phone shops called Murray Mobile and was involved in a scheme where fake iPhones were sent to Apple for repair, and genuine replacements were sent to Hong Kong to be sold outside the EU. The court heard that Guo also sold counterfeit Apple products in his shops. A significant quantity of counterfeit goods, including power adaptors and phone cases, were found during a search of his stores. Guo's co-accused, Lukasz Lupa, was also jailed for his role in the scheme. The court noted that Apple lost considerable value due to the fraud, and Guo was found to have used his stores to sell counterfeit Apple products. The court ordered the forfeiture of the cash sums involved and the Audi, which was in the possession of Guo's wife. Chengwen Guo pleaded guilty.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Irish rep of transnational crime gang jailed over €10m 'zombie' iPhone fraud. Charges or matters: theft and money laundering offences on dates between 2021 and 2022. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- January 2022 Hearing Or Sentence
- July 2021 Hearing Or Sentence
- January 10, 2022 Hearing Or Sentence
- June 5, 2019 Hearing Or Sentence
- September 3, 2021 Hearing Or Sentence
- September 11, 2024 Incident
- 2021 and 2022 Other
- 2025-11-25 Publication
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: theft and money laundering offences on dates between 2021 and 2022 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Judge Martin Nolan described Guo as "a very energetic man" who had engaged in "very substantial criminal misbehaviour." "This man deserves a severe custodial sentence," said Judge Nolan, describing the offending as "white collar deviance". Last month Guo's co-accused, who was an employee of Fonfix, a tech repair business in Sandyford south Dublin, was jailed in the same court.
Defendant
Outcome: Lukasz Lupa (45) of Kukukcza, Wagrowiec, Poland was given a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to two counts of facilitating a criminal organisation on dates between June 5, 2019 and September 3, 2021 under section 72 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006.
Places mentioned
- Dublin
- Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
- Parnell Street
- Dublin
- Main Street
- Parnell Street
Topics
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