Following a raid on an apartment in Maputo, the city of Mozambique, where the fake Apple iPhones were being put together, authorities there detained two Chinese nationals and seized 1,165 of the counterfeit devices.
According to the police, the alleged counterfeiters were able to use sophisticated technical processes, such as giving the phones distinctive serial numbers. The suspects have said they did nothing illegal. According to customs officers, a tip-off helped them locate the culprits.
“We got a complaint that made people suspicious. After three weeks of research, we found this factory after activating our operational lines to check the validity “explained Gino Jone, the head of the Maputo City customs operational region for Mozambique.
He continued by saying that some of the seized phones were likely obtained through theft, while others may have been brought in illegally. Although it is an apartment, it functions like a factory. Here, mobile phones are produced, and a store in the Alto-Maè neighborhood is where IMEIs [unique serial numbers]are registered and sold he explained.
