Lawyers for Huawei’s Meng Wanzhou blast ‘unlawful’ arrest and ‘corrosive’ remarks by Donald Trump as they say US extradition case should be thrown out
- Meng was arrested in Canada at US request on suspicion of defrauding bankers by falsely depicting Huawei’s alleged operations in Iran, breaching US sanctions
- Her lawyers say that she was deprived of her Canadian Charter rights and that Trump’s remarks on the case have made a trial impossible
Lawyers for Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou blasted Canadian authorities and US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, saying they would seek to have her US extradition case thrown out because her arrest was “unlawful” and Trump’s “corrosive” remarks about her case had prejudiced any trial.
Her team also said at an administrative hearing in British Columbia’s Supreme Court that they would fight extradition on the grounds that the US fraud charges against her failed to satisfy the requirement of criminality in Canada.
Lawyer Scott Fenton said Meng’s detention at Vancouver’s airport on December 1 lasted three hours and deprived her of her Canadian Charter rights, when she was questioned about the US charges and her electronic devices seized before she was formally arrested.
“Ms Meng will apply to this court … for an order staying proceedings as an abuse of process,” he said. Her “unlawful search, detention, interrogation and delayed arrest” represented a “pattern of serious charter violations” by Canadian and US authorities, he said.
“Her rights were placed in total suspension,” he said.