Chicago man admits to sealing $1 million in electronics

NEWARK, N.J. — Federal prosecutors in New Jersey say a Chicago man has admitted stealing more than $1 million worth of iPhones and iPads from Verizon Wireless.

Stephen Gunn used an elaborate scheme that involved misappropriating corporate purchasing accounts and diverting the shipments by bribing Federal Express drivers. He pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and faces 20 years in prison when he's sentenced July 15.

Prosecutors say Gunn accessed the online accounts of dozens of Verizon's customers, including several in New Jersey. He used those accounts to place unauthorized orders for electronics that he had shipped to addresses in Texas, including several that didn't exist.

At Gunn's direction, two Federal Express drivers intercepted the shipments, removed the contents and re-shipped the contents to addresses in Illinois that Gunn provided.