Apple Chief Security Officer Indicted Over Allegedly Bribing Officials With iPads To Obtain Gun Permits

Apple Inc AAPL Chief Security Officer Thomas Moyer stands accused of attempting to obtain a permit to carry concealed weapons through bribery, Reuters reported Monday.

What Happened: Moyer, 50, was indicted by a grand jury on Monday for attempting to bribe the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office with a promised donation of 200 iPads to obtain four concealed-weapon permits for Apple employees, according to Reuters.

Two officers of the Sheriff’s office were also reportedly charged with soliciting bribes for the permits.

Ed Swanson, Moyer’s attorney, said that the weapon permits were applied to protect executives and employees after shootings at other companies such as at the Alphabet Inc GOOGL GOOG unit YouTube’s headquarters in 2018.

“They went through the process the way you’re supposed to do it,” Swanson said regarding the permits, as per Reuters. “There was no bribe, no quid pro quo.”

Why It Matters: Carrying concealed weapons is illegal in California, without a permit. County sheriffs have wide powers over the issuance of such permits, noted Reuters. The Tim Cook-led company said it found no wrongdoing after conducting its own investigation.

Last year, Cook had called inaction in the United States against gun control “insanity” after deadly mass shootings took place in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, reported CNBC.

Price Action: Apple shares closed nearly 3% lower at $113.85 on Monday and gained 0.66% in the after-hours session.

Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story wrongly-attributed a quote from Ed Swanson to Thomas Moyer. We regret the error.