Huawei CFO suing Canadian government over December arrest

Huawei CFO, Meng Wanzhou, is suing the Canadian government, its border agency and the police force, saying they detained, searched, and interrogated her before they told her she was arrested, according to an ABC News report.

Canada arrested Huawei’s CFO in Vancouver airport at the request of the US in December on suspicion of fraud and breaching US sanctions against Iran.

Lawsuit

A civil claim filed in the British Columbia Supreme Court alleges that instead of immediately arresting her, authorities questioned her “under the guise of a routine customs” search, and used the opportunity to “provide evidence and information”.

According to the lawsuit, The Canadian Border Service Agency allegedly took her electronic devices and unlawfully viewed the content after obtaining her passwords, without advising her of the real reason for her arrest.

Meng, who is now free on bail, was formally arrested about three hours after initial detention.

“This case concerns a deliberate and premeditated effort on the part of the defendant officers to obtain evidence and information from the plaintiff in a manner which they knew constituted serious violations of the plaintiff’s rights”, the suit says.

Diplomatic row

The arrest of Ms. Meng, who is the daughter of Huawei’s founder, led to a diplomatic row between China, the US, and Canada.

On Friday, the Canadian government gave the green light for extradition hearings to begin. She is expected to appear in a Vancouver court on Wednesday to set a date for her extradition hearing.

It could be months, or even years, before her case, is resolved, according to the report.

Beijing has accused Washington of a politically motivated attempt to damage the company, and also detained former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig and Canadian entrepreneur Michael Spavor on the 10th of December in an attempt to put pressure to on Canada to release Meng.

Kovrig and Spavor have been denied access to a lawyer and are unable to see any members of their family since their arrest.

A Chinese court also sentenced a Canadian citizen to death on accusation for drug trafficking, following the arrest of Huawei’s CFO.

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