A sophisticated salary scam has come into the picture leading to the termination of 185 employees, mostly Indians, over allegations of misusing Apple’s charitable Matching Grants scheme with intentions to multiply their compensation. The American consumer electronics company conducted an investigation and found involved workers’ donations lent to qualified charities equivalent to the donations granted from Apple, finding them guilty of violating company protocol.
As per the multiple reports circulating in the media, 185 Apple employees, at Cupertino headquarters, were found involved in monetary fraud and cheating the firm to inflate their compensation. Six of those employees have been identified by the Bay Area authorities and warrants have been issued against them, according to Firstpost. While none of the terminated employees are identified as Indian, however, the reports suggest that several of the 185 are of Indian origin, having dissipated Telugu charity organizations being established in the US to manifest the scheme.
Employees Masterminding The Fraud Scam
The fraud scheme involved employees working with nonprofit organizations to fabricate donations. These nonprofits allegedly refunded the original contributions to the employees while retaining Apple’s matching funds, enabling the individuals to profit from the program. The individuals facing charges in the case are Siu Kei (Alex) Kwan, Yat C (Sunny) Ng, Yathei (Hayson) Yuen, Wentao (Victor) Li, Zheng Chang, and Lichao Ni, all based in different parts of the Bay Area, as per County of Santa Clara District Attorney Office. Siu Kei is identified as the leading agent, serving as the accountant for ACICE and the CEO of Hop4Kids.
“Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigation”
The district attorney's office expressed that these people cheated Apple for lump-sum of $152,000 in around three-year period. In case the allegations are true, the scheme would not only violate Apple’s corporate policies but could also infringe upon US tax laws, potentially amounting to tax fraud. The individuals would be “charged with several felony offenses, including grand theft, conspiracy to commit felony grand theft, perjury, and tax fraud,” said the District Attorney's Office news release. Additionally, they might be charged with aggravated white-collar crime procurement due to the huge amounts of money involved. In case of being convicted, imprisonment, paying required restitution, and fines and fees are the punishments they might face. Arraignment dates are yet to be scheduled. Apple has yet to issue an official statement on the issue, and the information remains unconfirmed, while the investigations are still underway by the “Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigation” office. Arrest warrants are already issued for all these defendants.
How Apple’s Charitable Programs Worked?
"The Apple charitable scheme benefits employees when they make donations through Benevity, a third-party platform. After the employees contribute, Apple matches the donation by 100% to 200%, and Benevity facilitates the transfer of funds to the designated charities. In this case, Kwan leveraged his position with charitable trusts to reimburse the donation amounts to employees while keeping Apple's matching funds, violating company policy.
Media reports emphasize the deceptive and calculated nature of the fraud, where employees took advantage of the Matching Grants program to inflate their salaries. By collaborating with nonprofits, they falsified donations, enabling them to benefit from Apple’s matching funds, ultimately gaining unjustified financial advantage through the scheme.
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