CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Two Charlotte businessmen were sentenced Wednesday for illegally obtaining and selling more than 20,000 iPhones overseas, according to the United States Attorney’s Office.
Hazmeh Jamal Alasfar, 31, and Tayseer Issam Alkhayyat, 35, are both sentenced to 46 months in prison for a multi-year scheme to buy, sell, and ship fraudulently obtained and stolen new Apple iPhones to domestic and international buyers.
Alasfar and Alkhayyat operated many businesses in Charlotte, including Cellport International Inc. and D Town Wireless, which they used to carry out the scheme.
The pair and their employees purchased new iPhones, which were often still sealed in the box, at prices significantly below retail value from people who originally got them from fraud and theft.
Officials say between Jan. 2019 and Jan. 2020, Alasfar and Alkhayyat sold and shipped more than 20,000 new iPhones for more than $20 million, many of which were illegally obtained.
On March 2, the defendants pleaded guilty to interstate and foreign transportation of stolen property.
The two are ordered to report to the federal Bureau of Prisons to start their prison sentence.
