Apple supplier employees detained in ‘strange’ case in China

Taipei, Taiwan Reuters —

Four employees of Taiwan’s Foxconn, the world’s largest iPhone assembler, have been detained in China under “quite strange” circumstances, Taiwan’s government said.

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, in a statement to Reuters on Thursday, said the four employees had been detained in China’s Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province that is home to a major Foxconn plant assembling Apple’s (AAPL) iPhones, on suspicion of the equivalent of “breach of trust.”

“The circumstances of this case are quite strange,” it said.

The case may be connected to corruption and abuse of power by a small number of Chinese security officials, the council added, without giving details.

Foxconn declined to comment.

The council said Foxconn had stated the company had “suffered no losses and that the four employees had done nothing to harm the company’s interests.”

“This has seriously damaged the confidence of companies. We call on relevant departments on the other side of the Taiwan Strait to investigate and deal with it as soon as possible,” it said.

Calls to China’s Taiwan Affairs Office seeking comment outside of office hours went unanswered.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te delivers a speech during his visit to inspect Taiwanese navy on the outlying Penghu Island, Taiwan, Friday, September 6, 2024.

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