Huawei CFO case doesn’t fulfill the double criminality clause of Canadian extradition law

Huawei chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, was arrested on Dec 1, 2018, at the Vancouver International Airport in lieu of the charges filed against her by the US government. Following her arrest, the case has proceeded in the Canadian court of law while the U.S is consistently pushing the Canadian authorities for extradition.  

The charges against the executive were filed for fraud against the HSBC bank. The CFO is accused of misrepresenting Huawei Technologies’ business in Iran to continue availing the financial services of the bank. Meng has reiterated her innocence on multiple occasions and is adamant to fight extradition.  

Canada Is Not Liable To Consider The U.S Sanctions Law

As per the court filings released on January 10^th, the charges against Meng are those of a financial fraud that lies under the jurisdiction of Canada. According to the Canadian prosecutors, therefore, Canadian authorities are not liable to consider the U.S sanctions law.

According to Meng’s lawyers, the CFO can’t be extradited to the U.S since her conduct doesn’t amount to a crime in Canada as, at the time, the North American country had no sanctions against Iran. Double criminality is a fundamental component of Canadian extradition law that clearly states that the conduct of the accused must be illegal not only in the country that demands extradition but also in Canada. The argument was presented in the Canadian court in November. Meng’s extradition hearing is scheduled to start on January 20^th.

Meng Is Currently On A Multi-Million-Dollar Bail

Following Meng’s arrest in Canada, China was reported to have detained two of the Canadian citizens. As per the experts, the move was barely perceived as retaliation from China. Upon approval of a multi-million-dollar bail last year, Meng now lives in her Vancouver home where she is strictly under surveillance. Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, the two Canadian citizens, however, are still under Chinese detention.

Huawei spokesperson is yet to comment on the latest developments in its CFO’s case.

Owing to the CFO’s arrest in Canada, the U.S – China trade war, and Trump’s allegation on Huawei equipment as a global security threat, the company has struggled in the stock market in 2019. Having started the year at 4.17 CNY, the $2.82 billion company was reported to have ended the last year at a much lower 3.18 CNY instead. Huawei closed the last week at 3.28 CNY in the stock market.