It's hyberbole, but on the other hand, it's ridiculous to think that Apple had nothing to do with it. If Apple remains silent, doesn't file any sort of police report, nothing would have happened.
That said, Apple has been a litigious, heavy-handed company for it's entire history so their actions aren't surprising.
R.E.A.C.T. is an outrage. Most police departments don’t put a ton of effort into resolving nonviolent theft cases. Obviously big rich Silicon Valley companies like Apple are going to have a lot of political clout in Santa Clara county come what may, but that’s a reality that should be pushed against not formalized. Apple can afford its own lawyers, it doesn’t need the cops working for it.
It really doesn't matter how much political clout Apple has. The Gizmodo people made the police officers' jobs too easy by publishing all the evidence necessary to convict them. They were low-hanging fruit.
That said, Apple has been a litigious, heavy-handed company for it's entire history so their actions aren't surprising.