You're absolutely right - ran an IMEI check, phone is definitely a US model and linked to Verizon. The CSC is definitely US. As it is, the phone appears to have sh*t the bed completely today - don't know if it's the side button or the display that's the problem, but locked the screen after finishing a phone call and now the display is completely black and I'm not sure if the side button feels like it did. FML...