【The Australian】orker commits suicide after losing secret iPhone prototype

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orker commits suicide after losing secret iPhone prototype
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25825564-2703,00.html

Jane Macartney, Beijing| July 24, 2009                                                               
Article from:The Australian                                                

A CHINESE worker leapt to his death after allegedly being beaten bysecurity guards for mislaying a top-secret prototype of the latestApple iPhone.

Sun Danyong, 25, had beenresponsible for sending 16 of the fourth-generation mobile phones toApple from the factory in Shenzhen, southern China, where he worked.Ten days ago, he discovered that one of the N90 models was missing andreported it to his employer, Foxconn Technology Group, a Taiwanese company that manufactures Apple products.

Three days later, he jumped out the window of his 12th-floor flat.Friends of Mr Sun told the Southern Metropolis Daily that the company'ssecurity guards had searched his apartment, detained him and beatenhim.

Mr Sun, a product manager, had become frantic after discovering thathe had mislaid one of the gadgets. He vented his frustration in textmessages to his girlfriend and to a former classmate as he tried tofind the device.

Officials from Foxconn's security division became suspicious andraided his home. The security chief of Foxconn has since been suspendedand handed over to the police. The official, Gu Qinming, denied that hestruck Mr Sun.

"I got a bit agitated," Mr Gu told the newspaper. "I pointed my finger ... (but the beating) couldn't have happened".  

An Apple spokeswoman in Hong Kong said: "We are saddened by thetragic loss of this young employee and we are awaiting results of theinvestigations into his death. We require our suppliers to treat allworkers with dignity and respect."

The Times