Huawei CFO Meng loses key court fight against extradition to United States
Tessa Vikander, Moira Warburton
MAY 27, 2020 / 11:06 AM / UPDATED 6
HOURS AGO
VANCOUVER/TORONTO (Reuters) -
Huawei Technologies Co’s Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou was dealt a
setback by a Canadian court on Wednesday as she tries to avoid extradition to
the United States to face bank fraud charges, dashing hopes for an end to her
18-month house arrest in Vancouver.
The ruling, which could further
deteriorate relations between Ottawa and Beijing, elicited immediate strong
reaction from China’s embassy in Canada, which said Canada is “accomplice to
United States efforts to bring down Huawei and Chinese high-tech companies.”
Meng, a Chinese citizen and daughter
of Huawei’s billionaire founder Ren Zheng, was arrested in December 2018 on a
warrant issued by U.S. authorities. They accuse her of bank fraud for
misleading HSBC about Huawei’s relationship with a company operating in Iran, putting HSBC at
risk of fines and penalties for breaking U.S. sanctions on Tehran.
But British Columbia’s Superior
Court Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes disagreed, ruling the legal
standard of double criminality had been met.
“Ms. Meng’s approach ... would seriously limit Canada’s ability
to fulfill its international obligations in the extradition context for fraud
and other economic crimes,” Holmes said.
Huawei Technologies Chief Financial
Officer Meng Wanzhou leaves her home to attend a court hearing in Vancouver,
British Columbia, Canada May 27, 2020. REUTERS/Jennifer Gauthier
Huawei said it was disappointed by
the Canadian court ruling and it expects that Canada’s judicial system will
ultimately prove her innocence.
The ruling paves the way for the
extradition hearing to proceed to the second phase starting June, examining
whether Canadian officials followed the law while arresting Meng.
Slideshow (3 Images)
Closing arguments are expected in
the last week of September and first week of October.
Reid Weingarten, a U.S. lawyer for
Meng, said Meng should “not be a pawn or a hostage” in the China-U.S.
relationship. Ties between the two superpowers are deteriorating steadily amid
disputes over trade and the future of Hong Kong.
“Today’s ruling in Canada is only the opening salvo in a very
long process ... we are confident that ultimately justice will be done,”
Weingarten said.
Shortly after the ruling was
released Meng, 48, arrived at the courthouse for an in-person briefing and left
without talking to the media. Meng says she is innocent..
Shortly after Meng’s arrest,
Beijing detained two Canadians on national security charges and halted imports
of canola seed.
ICE canola futures dipped on
Wednesday, giving up gains after the ruling.
The Global Times, published by the
People’s Daily, the official newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party, said
the ruling “will make Canada a pathetic clown and a scapegoat in the fight
between China and the U.S.”
The Chinese embassy in Ottawa said
in a statement that China expresses strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition
to the decision on Meng and has made serious representations with Canada.
The U.S. Department of Justice
thanked Canada for its continued assistance. Canada’s justice ministry said its
lawyers were committed to moving ahead as fast as possible.
Reporting by Tessa Vikander and
Moira Warburton; Additional reporting by David Ljunggren and Steve Scherer in
Ottawa, Rod Nickel in Winnipeg and Karen Freifeld in New York; Editing by Denny
Thomas and Lisa Shumaker
Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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