FREMONT, Calif. — Sheriff’s deputies from San Mateo County searched the home of Gizmodo blogger Jason Chen, who created an online sensation when he posted extensive information about a lost iPhone prototype, according to a message Monday on the site.
Gizmodo said the deputies, who had a search warrant when they arrived at Chen’s home Friday night, seized two dozen pieces of electronic equipment, including computers, hard drives and digital cameras. Chen said officers searched him for weapons.
Apple did not reply to a request for comment on the investigation.
Last week, Gizmodo acknowledged having paid $5,000 for what the site said was a next-generation iPhone lost by an Apple engineer at a Redwood City, Calif., beer garden in March. According to the blog, another bar patron found the phone and eventually sold it to Gizmodo.
Tom Newton, general counsel for the California Newspaper Publishers Association, said Chen’s unpublished work should be covered by California’s press-shield law. Los Angeles Times
