Brazilian Ministry of Justice fines Apple over $2 million and orders ban of iPhones sold without a charger

Apple is facing a hefty fine by Brazil’s Ministry of Justice for the company’s decision to stop including a power adapter with the purchase of new iPhones. In addition to a fine of R$ 12.275 million (~$2.34 million), the Ministry of Justice ordered Apple to stop sales of all iPhone models that don’t include a power adapter.

Apple issued a statement in response to the ban and the fine. It stated that it would work to resolve the concerns of the National Consumer Secretary (SENACON), a department within the Ministry of Justice that decided on the fine.

We have already won several court rulings in Brazil on this matter and we are confident that our customers are aware of the various options for charging and connecting their devices.” Apple BR – Translated from Portuguese

The fine won’t immediately go into effect, but if the Ministry verifies that Apple circumvented the sales ban it intends to enforce it.

The Ministry’s reason for the fine and ban alleges that Apple is selling an incomplete product by not including the charge adapter. It also has expressed that Apple hasn’t proven whether removing the charger had any supposed environmental benefits that Apple used to sell its decision.

Sources (Portuguese) 1 • 2