Three men robbed iStore staff at Woodlands Mall, Pretoria last Tuesday at gunpoint, stealing multiple Apple iPhone, iPad and Mac products.
However, all the stolen products had remote device management systems activated, which allowed iStore to hard-lock them, rendering them unusable, the Core Group-owned retailer said in a statement on Monday.
Once switched on, these products will display a message reading: “This is a stolen device, please return to iStore.”
This prevents the device from being accessed or used.
iStore CEO Chris Dodd said: “We have implemented stringent security measures to protect our staff and customers; this is our priority.
“iStore is constantly approached by unsuspecting customers who have purchased used Apple products that are either remote-locked or network Sim-locked and, as a result, are unusable.
“Customers should be extremely cautious and always buy Apple devices from trustworthy sources with certification and warranties. If the price seems too good to be true, it usually is.”
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The suspects in the iStore Woodlands Mall robbery were captured on video surveillance (see images above). There is a reward offered for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects. – © 2024 NewsCentral Media