Send to Kindle
Chinese telecom giant Huawei's chief financial officer faces US fraud charges related to sanctions-breaking business dealings with Iran, a Canadian court heard Friday, a week after she was detained on an American extradition request, reports AFP.
Meng Wanzhou, 46, was arrested in Canada's Pacific coast city of Vancouver on December 1 while changing planes during a trip from Hong Kong to Mexico -- ratcheting up tensions between the United States and China just as the countries' leaders agreed to a truce in their trade war.
A day-long hearing was adjourned until Monday, when the judge is expected to render a decision on bail. Until then, she will remain in custody.
Canadian government lawyer John Gibb-Carsley asked for bail to be denied, saying Meng has been accused of "conspiracy to defraud multiple financial institutions" and if convicted faces more than 30 years in prison.
She is specifically accused of lying to a US bank, identified by her lawyer as "Hong Kong Bank," about the use of a covert subsidiary to sell to Iran in breach of sanctions.
Meng had personally denied to bankers any direct connections between Huawei and the subsidiary, SkyCom, when in fact "SkyCom is Huawei," Gibb-Carsley said, putting the bank in jeopardy of violating sanctions. SkyCom's alleged sanctions breaches occurred from 2009 to 2014, while Meng's alleged fraudulent misrepresentations were in 2013.
Meng had been a member of SkyCom's board a decade ago, but the company was later sold, said her lawyer David Martin.
US authorities, however, claim Huawei continued to control the company, with Gibb-Carsley noting that SkyCom employees continued to carry Huawei identification and use its email.
He suggested that Meng has also shown a pattern of avoiding the United States over the past year since becoming aware of the investigation into the matter, arguing that she has no ties to Canada and has access to vast wealth and political connections -- and thus poses a flight risk.
Huawei said in a Friday statement that it "will continue to follow the bail hearing" next week, expressing "every confidence that the Canadian and US legal systems will reach the right conclusion."
We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!
In Bulgaria, a stark reality persists regarding domestic violence, as highlighted by Assoc. Dr. Aleksey Pamporov from the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
Bulgarian authorities found themselves grappling with a peculiar case involving a 60-year-old Ukrainian woman
In a pioneering initiative to address road safety, a new campaign will see road offenders receiving letters from relatives of those who lost their lives in accidents
Bulgaria is grappling with a sharp increase in counterfeit currency, with the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) reporting a concerning surge in fake banknotes, particularly those of 100 BGN denominations
In a chilling turn of events, the lifeless body of a man was discovered in Sofia's "Zapaden Park" yesterday, as reported by NovaTV
In a tragic turn of events, a 57-year-old man fatally assaulted a 42-year-old woman in her Cherven Bryag home before taking his own life in another residence
UN Happiness Report: Bulgaria's Astonishing Leap in Rankings
Bulgaria: 3 Regions With Lowest Life Expectancy - EU Report 2022
