They don’t mess around in China, do they? According to the Wall Street Journal, the Shenzhen Bao’an People’s Court in China has today put three people behind bars for conspiring to steal information about the iPad 2 from one of Apple’s main suppliers prior to the tablet’s release. The court said in an official statement that Xiao Chengsong, general manager of Shenzhen MacTop Electronics Co., had offered 20,000 yuan ($3,000) plus discounts on MacTop products to a former Hon Hai employee, Hou Pengna, in return for Ms. Hou providing information about the iPad 2. In order to obtain said information, Ms.Hou hired Lin Kecheng, who worked in the Hon Hai research-and-development department, to obtain digital images of the iPad 2’s back cover last September, a full six months before the eventual release of the iPad 2. MacRumors, also reporting on the trial, says that the three people in question were sent to prison for from 12 to 18 months, and will also have to pay fines from between the equivalent of $4,500 to $23,000.
Source: China Court Sends Three to Prison Over iPad Leaks - WSJ.com, Three People Sent to Prison in China Over iPad 2 Leaks - Mac Rumors