Apple's Global Security Chief Cleared of Bribery Charges Following Accusation of Scheme to Trade iPads for Gun Permits

Apple's global security chief, Thomas Moyer, has been cleared by a California judge of bribery charges following accusations that the security chief participated in a scheme to donate 200 iPads worth $75,000 to the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office in exchange for concealed gun permits, Reuters reports.

apple park drone june 2018 2
According to the charges brought forward in November, Moyer agreed to donate 200 iPads to the Sheriff's office in exchange for concealed gun permits for Apple's security team at a 2019 meeting. Furthermore, according to prosecutors, Moyer acted upon the request of Santa Clara County Undersheriff Rick Sung, who allegedly threatened to withhold the permits unless the iPads were donated.

Ultimately, a California judge believed that the iPad donations offered by Moyer came as a misunderstanding. According to the judge, by the time Moyer had offered the iPads, he was under the belief that the permits were already issued, rather than the iPads being a requirement for their issuance.

Judge Eric S. Geffon of the Superior Court of Santa Clara County found on Tuesday that Moyer had been in talks with the Sheriff's Office about permits for more than a year by the time of the 2019 meeting. By then, Geffon wrote, the evidence suggests Moyer believed the permits were already approved and would be issued soon.

Judge Eric S. Geffon also further noted that the argument against Moyer is "pure speculation" and "not supported by the evidence presented to the grand jury." Moyer, in a statement, thanked the court for "giving this case such careful consideration, and for allowing me to move forward with my life."

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.4 and iOS 27 Features Revealed in New Leak

Friday December 12, 2025 10:56 am PST by
Macworld's Filipe Espósito today revealed a handful of features that Apple is allegedly planning for iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and even iOS 28. The report said the features are referenced within the code for a leaked internal build of iOS 26 that is not meant to be seen by the public. However, it appears that Espósito and/or his sources managed to gain access to it, providing us with a sneak peek...
apple beta 26 lineup

Apple Leak Confirms Work on Foldable iPhone, AirTag 2, and Dozens More Devices

Monday December 15, 2025 2:05 pm PST by
Last week, details about unreleased Apple devices and future iOS features were shared by Macworld. This week, we learned where the information came from, plus we have more findings from the leak. As it turns out, an Apple prototype device running an early build of iOS 26 was sold, and the person who bought it shared the software. The OS has a version number of 23A5234w, and the first...
Apple Logo Top Half

Early iOS 26 Software Leak Uncovers Dozens of Upcoming Apple Features

Monday December 15, 2025 3:05 pm PST by
Software from an iPhone prototype running an early build of iOS 26 leaked last week, giving us a glimpse at future Apple devices and iOS features. We recapped device codenames in our prior article, and now we have a list of some of the most notable feature flags that were found in the software code. In some cases, it's obvious what the feature flags are referring to, while some are more...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Leak Reveals Foldable iPhone Details

Monday December 15, 2025 9:09 am PST by
The first foldable iPhone will feature a series of design and hardware firsts for Apple, according to details shared by the Weibo leaker known as Digital Chat Station. According to a new post, via machine translation, Apple is developing what the leaker describes as a "wide foldable" device, a term used to refer to a horizontally oriented, book-style foldable with a large internal display....
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.2 With Alarms for Reminders, Lock Screen Changes, Enhanced Safety Alerts and More

Friday December 12, 2025 10:10 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.2, the second major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.2 comes a little over a month after iOS 26.1 launched. ‌iOS 26‌.2 is compatible with the ‌iPhone‌ 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation ‌iPhone‌ SE. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings >...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features on Your iPhone

Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon. Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week. iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
macOS Tahoe 26 Thumb

Apple Releases macOS Tahoe 26.2 With Edge Light

Friday December 12, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Tahoe 26.2, the second major update to the macOS Tahoe operating system that came out in September. macOS Tahoe 26.2 comes five weeks after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.1. Mac users can download the macOS Tahoe update by using the Software Update section of System Settings. macOS Tahoe 26.2 includes Edge Light, a feature that illuminates your face with soft...
airpods max 2024 colors

AirPods Max 2 Likely to Offer These 10 New Features

Monday December 15, 2025 7:41 am PST by
Apple released the AirPods Max on December 15, 2020, meaning the over-ear headphones launched five years ago today. While the AirPods Max were updated with a USB-C port and new color options last year, followed by support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio this year, the headphones lack some of the features that have been introduced for newer generations of the regular AirPods and the ...

Top Rated Comments

Quu Avatar
59 months ago

Why does Apple want gun permits? Aren’t they anti-2A? Or is that just for us poor peasants? They should be able to have guns in their death star?
It's for their trained security people who they pay to protect their interests and their executives. Tim Cook alone has had people break into the grounds of his home on several occasions and Apple pays millions in security every year.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ian87w Avatar
59 months ago
Wait, it's the county who "requested" for the iPads, no? Apple shouldn't be guilty if it's already proven that the corrupt county was the one demanding for it. Plus, Moyer went through the proper procedures internally for the donations. People should be looking at the county officers.

https://www.sanjoseinside.com/news/santa-clara-co-undersheriff-indicted-in-ccw-case/

People in California should be asking themselves about the corrupt officers, and why they were in their positions.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JPack Avatar
59 months ago
Smart move. See, this is how you're supposed to skirt the law.

You send the "gifts" after the application has been approved. The permits need to be renewed every 2 years and can be revoked at any time. It's about trust on both sides.

Apple always donates iPads to Sheriff's Offices around the country, don't they? ?
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
msp3 Avatar
59 months ago

Why does Apple want gun permits? Aren’t they anti-2A? Or is that just for us poor peasants? They should be able to have guns in their death star?
YOU are not allowed to have guns, you are not allowed to have a public police that maintains the rule of law, you are not allowed to have a secure boarder free from invasion. Meanwhile, THEY have private security forces, they live in gated communities with armed guards ready to shoot you dead, and they fly around the world in private jets while making more money than ever before impoverishing the working person. So liberal, loving, and progressive!
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lostngone Avatar
59 months ago

Why does Apple want gun permits? Aren’t they anti-2A? Or is that just for us poor peasants? They should be able to have guns in their death star?
I believe it is along the lines of “Guns for me but not for thee”. Guns are only bad when other people have them but Apple needs them.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jimthing Avatar
59 months ago

What kinda exchange transaction is that? Why is Apple even getting involve in this?
It wasn't a transaction. That's literally the whole point.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)