Lawyers seek to add evidence against US extradition
Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou’s legal team sought to admit more evidence contesting the US government’s account of her fraud case in a Canadian court on Monday, promising it was the final attempt days after the judge threw out similar evidence.
Meng, 49, was arrested in December 2018 at Vancouver International Airport on a US warrant for allegedly misleading HBSC about Huawei’s business dealings in Iran and causing the bank to violate US sanctions.
She has since been fighting the case while under house arrest in Vancouver. Both Meng and Huawei have denied the allegation and insisted she is innocent.
After two years of legal proceedings, Meng’s case now enters the final stretch leading up to a decision from Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes in British Columbia’s Supreme Court on whether to extradite her, pending approval from the federal minister of justice.
On Monday, defense lawyer Frank Addario argued a sworn statement from a Huawei accountant would show that in its request to extradite Meng, the United States misrepresented the risk HSBC allegedly incurred, proving the requesting state’s record of the case is “demonstrably unreliable”.
The affidavit from an accountant details credit facilities and loans issued between 2013 and 2017.
“The evidence is essential to correct the record and ensure the committal is based on an accurate summary of the loans,” Addario told Holmes.
Addario argued there is no proof HSBC sustained an increased risk of financial loss as a result of Meng’s alleged actions.
“There was never any risk the bank could incur a loss,” Addario said. “The court needs accurate evidence about the loans and credit facilities.”
Meng attended the hearing in a long blue dress, pink mask, and wearing a monitoring bracelet on her ankle. She paid close attention to the proceedings, occasionally reading court documents, while an interpreter translated.
Canadian prosecutor Robert Frater said the US record of the case does not allege the bank actually lost money, and the government did not need to show any financial loss occurred to prove the bank was exposed to risk.
In a ruling released on Friday, Holmes threw out a similar evidence request, ruling that testimony from bank employees would be more appropriately submitted at trial, not an extradition hearing.
The court will hear arguments starting on Wednesday regarding allegations that Canadian and US authorities committed legal missteps during Meng’s initial questioning and arrest, which her lawyers say should invalidate her extradition.
Abuse of process
Meng’s lawyers will claim an abuse of process, saying Canada Border Services Agency officers detained and questioned Meng without a lawyer, seized her electronic devices and compelled her to give up the pass codes before her official arrest.
Witness testimony on these allegations concluded in December 2020.
Meng’s lawyers have argued the case should be dismissed due to alleged interference by then-US president Donald Trump, who said he reserved the right to weigh in on the case if it would help the US secure a trade deal with China or serve other US national security interests.
Canadian prosecutors representing the federal government assert that appropriate processes were followed. They have argued that now that Trump is no longer president his comments are moot, and that their influence is best judged by a politician, not a judge.