Police I.D. Person Who Found iPhone Prototype
Police have reportedly identified the unnamed person who found the prototype iPhone lost by an Apple engineer in a Silicon Valley bar last month.
Investigators have interviewed the person who sold the prototype to Gizmodo for $5,000, the San Jose Business Journal reported on Tuesday. Citing law enforcement sources, the Journal said the name of the person wasn't disclosed, and it wasn't clear if whoever found the "4G" phone was responsible for selling it.
The phone has been the subject of massive media attention since April 18, when the blog Engadget posted photos of the device. Two days later, Gizmodo, an archrival, said it had paid $5,000 to someone who found it at the Gourmet Haus Straudt. Apple lawyers requested that Gizmodo return the phone to the company, which it did.
On Friday, CNET broke the news that a criminal investigation into the circumstances of the errant iPhone was under way. Hours after that story appeared, police served a search warrant on the Fremont, Calif., home of Jason Chen, a Gizmodo editor, and confiscated computers, servers, and other electronic gear.
San Mateo County prosecutors did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday afternoon. The county is sandwiched between San Francisco County and Santa Clara County, home to Apple's headquarters in Cupertino.
Legal experts say Gizmodo could face criminal charges for buying the phone, which could be considered stolen property. A blog post at NYTimes.com on Monday, citing unnamed law enforcement officials, said charges could be filed against the buyer of the prototype 4G phone--meaning Gizmodo.
If San Mateo County investigators are satisfied that they have identified the person who found the misplaced device, and they believe that nobody else violated the law, that could make it unnecessary to search the MacBooks and other computers seized from Chen's home on Friday. Gizmodo and the Electronic Frontier Foundation have said that search was illegal under California and federal journalist shield laws--unless, of course, Gizmodo employees are suspected of a crime.
Under a California law dating back to 1872, any person who finds lost property and knows who the owner is likely to be--but "appropriates such property to his own use"--is guilty of theft. There are no exceptions for journalists. In addition, a second state law says any person who knowingly receives property that has been obtained illegally can be imprisoned for up to one year.
Greg Sandoval contributed to this report. This article originally appeared on CNET News.com.