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2 charged in Deer Park Apple Store theft after cops recover 100 iPhones

Lake County sheriff's deputies recovered more than 100 iPhones after a traffic stop in Deer Park, leading to charges against two men who are accused of going to Apple stores around the country and exchanging damaged phones for working ones they could sell.

The arrest is the latest in a spate of thefts reported in the past year involving the Deer Park Apple store.

Mohammed Hosein, 23, of Detroit and Wen Jie Qin, 21, of San Francisco have been charged with felony burglary and retail theft, according to a Lake County sheriff's office news release Friday.

Hosein and Qin were arrested Wednesday after a deputy pulled them over near the Deer Park Town Center, authorities said. Hosein and Qin told the deputy they had exchanged broken iPhones at the store, authorities said. The deputy continued investigating because numerous fraudulent purchases have been conducted at the store.

Lake County sheriff spokesman Sgt. Chris Covelli said statements obtained by the deputy led him to become suspicious of Hosein and Qin. Detectives went to the Apple store to investigate and determined the duo used a fraudulent name when exchanging a damaged cellphone for a refurbished one, Covelli said.

The phone turned in was so badly damaged the store couldn't ascertain who the rightful owner of it was, Covelli said. He said that led officers to search the car, where more than 100 new and damaged phones were confiscated.

“They are going to stores across the country with severely damaged phones, exchanging them for new or refurbished phones, then reselling them for a profit,” Covelli said. He said it was unclear where the two obtained the damaged phones.

Hosein and Qin were being held in Lake County jail on $50,000 bail. Hosein, who was driving the vehicle, has also been charged with traffic-related offenses.

In the past year, the Lake County sheriff's office has arrested 10 people from New York and Michigan accused of committing high-value thefts at Apple stores. The sheriff's department said it conducts increased patrols near the store.

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Wen Jie Qin
Mohammed Hosein
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