Huawei CFO committed “commercial dishonesty” – KIRO 7 News Seattle

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – (AP) – A senior executive at Chinese communications giant Huawei Technologies committed fraud for saying and failing to say during a meeting with a bank official, a Canadian government attorney said at an extradition hearing on Wednesday.

Canada arrested Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of Huawei’s founder and chief financial officer, at Vancouver Airport in late 2018. The US wants it to be charged with fraud. Her arrest enraged Beijing, which sees her fall as a political move to prevent China’s rise.

The US accuses Huawei of using a Hong Kong mailbox company called Skycom to sell devices to Iran in violation of US sanctions. Meng, 49, committed fraud by misleading HSBC bank about the company’s business relationships in Iran.

The lengthy extradition process is entering a phase in which there is a dispute over the US government’s extradition request for Meng.

Justice Department attorney Robert Frater said the case against Meng was “a dishonest business deal.”

Meng met with an HSBC manager after a series of messages connected to Skycom through Huawei.

“MS. Meng’s statements (during the meeting) were dishonest because she said and what she didn’t,” said Frater.

Meng told the bank official that Huawei “has not engaged in any activity that could result in HSBC violating US sanctions law,” Frater said.

She also said Huawei is strict in complying with the sanctions and is demanding the same of all partners working in Iran.

“The truth is Huawei was in full control of Skycom,” said Frater. “Skycom is Huawei.

“The dishonesty was due in part to the fact that through what Ms. Meng said she painted a picture of distance and failed to reveal the true nature of the relationship through omissions. What we have here are both sins of commission and sins of omission. ‘

Vice-presiding judge Heather asked Frater why a large bank like HSBC would take a person’s word for it.

Frater said Meng is important because she is Huawei’s CFO.

Holmes wondered if it was Meng’s responsibility to explain risks to HSBC.

“She’s the one who gives them the information they can use to assess the risk,” said Frater. “The message she is giving you is that you are not taking any chances because we are all adhering to sanctions.”

When further questioned by Holmes, Frater said that some business with Iran could be done legally and that it was part of Meng’s job to be aware of the restrictions.

The judge also asked whether Meng had assured the bank that there was no risk of sanction violations, whether they would not assume that Huawei was in control of Skycom.

Frater said the message Meng sent was that Huawei “doesn’t work with bad people.”

Meng, who came to the court with a face mask and an electronic monitoring device on her ankle, followed the proceedings through a translator.

Holmes is unlikely to make a decision on Meng’s extradition until later this year. Whatever your decision, it is likely to be appealed.

Meng’s lawyers have denied any dishonesty on her part. They also argue that HSBC was not at risk and the charges against them are politically motivated.

China’s government criticized the arrest as part of US efforts to hamper its technology development. Huawei, a manufacturer of network devices and smartphones, is China’s first global technology brand and is at the center of Sino-US tensions over information systems technology and security.

On Tuesday, a Chinese court sentenced Canadian entrepreneur Michael Spavor to 11 years in prison for espionage. Spavor and fellow countryman Michael Kovrig were arrested in December 2018 in apparent retaliation for Meng’s arrest.

Spavor was sentenced by a court in Dandong, about 210 miles east of Beijing on the North Korean border. The government has released few details other than accusing Spavor of disclosing sensitive information to Kovrig since 2017. Both were held in isolation and have little contact with Canadian diplomats.

Earlier this week, northeastern Liaoning Provincial Supreme People’s Court rejected an appeal from Canadian Robert Schellenberg, whose 15-year drug smuggling sentence was increased to death in January 2019 after Meng’s arrest.

Meng is bailed out in Vancouver and lives in a mansion.

Canada and other countries, including Australia and the Philippines, face trade boycotts and other Chinese pressures in disputes with Beijing over human rights, the coronavirus and control of the South China Sea.

China has tried to put pressure on the government of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau by imposing import restrictions on canola oil and other products from Canada.

Meanwhile, Beijing is blocking imports of Australian wheat, wine and other products after its government has called for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

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