Huawei lawyers sue Canada over CFO December arrest
Lawyers of Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou are suing the Canadian government, its border agency and federal police following the CFO’s arrest in December last year.
Huawei lawyers allege Meng was detained, searched and interrogated for three hours in violation of her constitutional rights.
It comes after Canada arrested Meng in Vancouver on December 1 at the request of the US, which had brought charges against her and Huawei Technologies.
Meng was charged with bank and wire fraud to violate American sanctions against Iran, which made the US see the company as a threat to national security.
Civil lawsuit
Meng's lawyers said in a civil lawsuit filed on Friday, that the way in which officers obtained evidence and information from Meng violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The lawsuit added that Canadian Border Services officers unlawfully subjected Meng to detention, search and interrogation to obtain evidence from her before her arrest. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police had exercised its arrest warrant three hours after Meng's detention at the airport.
The lawsuit said. "The CBSA Officers knew or were recklessly indifferent to the fact that they had no authority to conduct such a search, which search was performed under the false pretense of a routine customs or immigration related examination," according to the lawsuit.
Meng out on bail
Canada's justice ministry said it did not comment on matters before the courts.
Since her arrest, Meng was released on bail and due to appear in a Vancouver court on Wednesday, when a date will be set for her extradition hearing.
The lawsuit further alleged that officers unlawfully opened and viewed contents of Meng's seized devices in violation of her rights, after the CFO was ordered to surrender all her electronic devices, computers and passwords.
The Canadian government approved her extradition proceedings on Friday.
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