Rotten Apple Pleads Guilty in Kickback Case

Paul Devine, the former Apple manager accused of taking some $2.5 million in kickbacks from Asian suppliers in return for information that helped them win the company’s business, pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud and conspiracy on Monday, agreeing to forfeit more than $2.25 million in proceeds from the scheme.

Devine, who worked for Apple between 2005 and 2010, was accused of leaking product roadmaps, sales reports and other information to six of the company’s suppliers in Asia. Said U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California Melinda Haag, “The scheme enabled the suppliers and manufacturers to, among other things, negotiate more favorable contracts with Apple than they would have been able to obtain without the confidential information.”

Currently free on bail, Devine will be sentenced June 6. He faces up to 20 years in prison.