Huawei’s CFO Meng Wanzhou was “tricked” into giving details about herself and the company when the CBSA in Vancouver detained her in December, her lawyers say.
During a court hearing, Meng’s legal team accused authorities of “manipulating details” and made it seem like they were following standard procedure, the CBC reported.
“Ms. Meng was tricked and she was both unlawfully and unfairly deprived of her constitutional rights,” Meng’s lawyer, Scott Fenton, told B.C. Supreme Court Associate Chief.
Fenton has asked for the chief to order Canada’s attorney general to “produce records” that might help Meng’s case.
The senior Huawei executive was arrested in December and later, the U.S. charged her, Huawei and its subsidiary 13 counts of bank and wire fraud.
She is currently facing extradition to the United States. Her extradition hearing has been scheduled for January 2020.
The CBC noted that this week’s appearance in court is related to “a separate but included process” her lawyers are hoping to use as a case that should be disregarded because of violated charter rights.
Huawei’s lawyers allege that Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers seized Meng’s electronic devices, asked for passwords and questioned her about Huawei without telling her that there was an arrest warrant.
During the proceeding, her lawyers said that the CBSA abused their power to gather information for the RCMP and FBI.
Meng’s lawyers also said that the CBSA didn’t provide details that were now available in notes, like officers being told to carry electronics in special bags that would block anyone trying to attempt to wipe information from the devices.
“If one simply read the CBSA’s version of events, one would never know that those events occurred,” Fenton said.
The Crown is set to make arguments next week.
Source: CBC