Cops say the man seen in a viral video stealing from an Emeryville Apple Store stole $250,000 worth of goods from the Berkeley store.
sfstandard.com
Viral video Apple Store thief stole $250K in goods from another Apple Store, allegedly
Apple devices are on display at Emeryville's Apple Store, where a man was seen snatching 50 iPhones in a viral video. | Source: Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group/Getty Images
By
Josh RamPublished Feb. 16, 2024 • 8:00am
Police say the man seen in a
viral video swiping 50 iPhones, valued at almost $50,000 total, from the Emeryville Apple Store before skipping past a police car also stole $254,958 in products from the Berkeley Apple Store.
Tyler Anthony Mims is the man in the red shoes and face mask in the viral video that popped up online on Feb. 7, according to the Emeryville Police Department. Police said nobody was in the squad car, and there were no officers in the area at the time.
Mims was arrested on Jan. 23, Jan. 30 and Feb. 5—the date the video was recorded—for allegedly stealing from the Emeryville Apple Store, according to Emeryville police.
The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to questions on whether Mims would be charged in connection with the Emeryville thefts.
A still from a viral video shows a man police say is Tyler Mims stealing dozens of iPhones from the Emeryville Apple store on Bay Street on Feb. 5, 2024.
The 22-year-old Berkeley resident was arrested again on Feb. 7 with Undre Deshaun Railey, 28, for stealing 75 iPhones valued at $68,035 from the Berkeley Apple Store earlier that day. Police traced them to a parking lot at Eastmont mall in Oakland using GPS from the stolen iPhones.
Mims and Railey were booked on suspicion of felony burglary, grand theft, organized retail theft, receiving stolen property and conspiracy to commit a crime in connection to a string of Berkeley Apple Store burglaries. They are co-defendants in an ongoing case at Alameda County Superior Court.
Mims’ attorney did not immediately respond to The Standard's request for comment.
Mims’ 20-year-old girlfriend, Iyana Hill, was also arrested on suspicion of receiving stolen property—she was not charged with a crime and is not in custody. Mims is the father of her three children, police documents say.
Police recognized Mims from Apple security footage, and Mims and Railey both admitted to burglarizing the Berkeley Apple Store multiple times, according to court records. Mims’ girlfriend also identified him in photos of Berkeley Apple Store thefts on Nov. 27, Dec. 31, Jan. 7, 14, 17, and Feb. 7.
Mims identified himself in a photo selling stolen iPhones in San Francisco after the Berkeley Apple Store theft on Nov. 27, 2023. Mims’ girlfriend also told police that Mims used her car to sell stolen property in San Francisco two times.
Mims told police he would steal the iPhones and sell them—he claimed he would get between $600 and $1,500 from each theft. Railey claimed he got $800 for his first theft.
The estimated loss from the Feb. 5 Emeryville Apple Store theft was over $49,000.
The total estimated loss from the string of thefts from the Berkeley Apple Store is $254,958.
Since his Feb. 7 arrest, Mims has remained in custody at Alameda County's Santa Rita Jail. Alameda Superior Court Judge Elena Condes set his bail at $100,000 during a Valentine’s Day hearing. Railey was released from jail under house arrest and GPS monitoring after the hearing.
During the string of Berkeley Apple Store thefts from November to February, Mims was on probation for misdemeanor corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant.
Timeline of Mims’ and Railey’s alleged Apple Store thefts:
- Nov. 27, 2023: Berkeley police say Mims and Railey stole 43 iPhones and two laptops valued at $50,715 from the Berkeley Apple Store.
- Dec. 7, 2023: Berkeley police say Mims and Railey stole 66 iPhones valued at $61,561 from the Berkeley Apple Store and fled in a white Kia Soul.
- Dec. 31, 2023: Berkeley police say Mims and Railey stole 29 iPhones valued at $26,523 from the Berkeley Apple Store and fled in a silver Hyundai Elantra.
- Jan. 7: Berkeley police say Mims and Railey attempted burglary and theft from the Berkeley Apple Store, but locked doors thwarted them.
- Jan. 14: Berkeley police say Mims and Railey attempted burglary and theft from the Berkeley Apple Store but were foiled by a security guard who held the door closed. Mims and Railey fled the scene in a white Chevrolet Camaro.
- Jan. 17: Berkeley police say Mims and Railey stole 50 iPhones valued at $48,124 from the Berkeley Apple Store and fled in a white Chevrolet Camaro.
- Jan. 23: Emeryville police say Mims is arrested on suspicion of stealing from the Emeryville Apple Store. No further information was provided.
- Jan. 30: Emeryville police say Mims is arrested on suspicion of stealing from the Emeryville Apple Store.
- Feb. 5: Emeryville police say Mims is arrested on suspicion of stealing from the Emeryville Apple Store.
- Feb. 7: Berkeley police say Mims and Railey are arrested at Eastmont mall in Oakland on suspicion of stealing 75 iPhones valued at $68,035 from the Berkeley Apple Store and fleeing in a maroon Dodge Ram.
- Feb. 8: Mims and Railey are booked into the Alameda County Santa Rita Jail.
- Feb. 9: The Alameda DA charges Mims and Railey with felony burglary, grand theft and organized retail theft in connection with Berkeley Apple Store thefts.
- Feb. 14: Railey is released by Condes, subject to GPS ankle monitoring and home detention supervised by the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office. Mims is held in jail on a $100,000 bond.
Mims and Railey are due to appear in Alameda County Superior Court for upcoming pretrial and preliminary hearings on Feb. 21 and Feb. 28.
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