San Francisco Police with No Record of Lost iPhone 5 Investigation - MacRumors
Skip to Content

San Francisco Police with No Record of Lost iPhone 5 Investigation

by

cava22 sf 0445

SFWeekly has cast some serious doubts about the lost iPhone 5 report posted by CNet yesterday. CNet had reported that an Apple employee had lost an iPhone prototype at a San Francisco restaurant and bar in July. Apple and the San Francisco Police reportedly investigated and even tracked down the location to a house which was searched.

SFWeekly called the San Francisco Police Department and discovered that they had no records of any investigation nor of any visit or search of the house claimed in the original article.

Esparza says no records of the visit to Bernal Heights by police officers -- which should be recorded in documentation per standard SFPD procedures -- exist at either Mission or Ingleside stations, at least one of which would have handled the incident. (Ingleside station covers Bernal Heights, while the phone was allegedly lost at Cava 22, a bar in the Mission.) Police dispatchers also have no records of any incident involving the address where the search for the phone supposedly took place, Esparza says.

Furthermore, the officer they spoke to said they had told CNet's reporter the same just weeks ago. Despite this, CNet reports their information came from someone 'familiar with the investigation". CNet has yet to clarify.

PCMag similarly contacted the San Francisco police who also denied any knowledge of the incident.

Update: Apple may have posed as police.

Top Rated Comments

caliguy Avatar
193 months ago
Ok, so maybe there was no prototype iPhone lost at Cava 22, but did you know they offer a lime-marinated shrimp ceviche?
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bb426 Avatar
193 months ago
Reporting nowadays can be summed up in three words.

It HELLA sucks.

What's up CNet?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BC2009 Avatar
193 months ago
Maybe somebody at CNET is part owner in that bar.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chrmjenkins Avatar
193 months ago
The whole thing has smelled kind of fishy. You're telling me this thing has been gone for over a month and no has paid to put it on the web?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
theBB Avatar
193 months ago
As soon as the rumor came out, there were people who got suspicious as the article was so gushing about the menu options at the bar. It sounds like a publicity stunt for the bar and another low point for CNET.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rudy69 Avatar
193 months ago
CNet lying.... no way :rolleyes:
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple to Release These 15 New Products Later This Year

Friday June 12, 2026 7:45 am PDT by
Apple's annual WWDC developers conference is drawing to a close, but there is still a lot to look forward to in the second half of the year. Apple is expected to release at least 15 more products later this year. Now that the more intelligent and personal version of Siri has finally arrived in beta, a full two years after Apple first previewed it at WWDC 2024, we should begin to see some new ...
iCloud iPhone 17 Pro

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Get Two New Perks on iOS 27

Tuesday June 9, 2026 11:29 am PDT by
If you pay for extra iCloud storage on your iPhone, beyond the 5GB included for free, you might receive two more perks on iOS 27 at no additional cost. First, Apple said there will be daily usage limits for some of the new and enhanced Apple Intelligence features on iOS 27, including image generation. However, the company noted that "increased access" is available with "most" iCloud+ storage ...
Apple Logo Top Half

Have One of These 16 Apple Devices? Software Support Ends This Fall

Saturday June 13, 2026 8:00 am PDT by
Apple will end software support for 16 devices this fall across four product lines, with the Apple Watch seeing the most sweeping cull in the product's history. The full extent of this year's software drops became clear with the announcements of macOS 27 Golden Gate, iPadOS 27, tvOS 27, and watchOS 27 at WWDC this week. The one bright spot is that iOS 27 features identical device support to...