Huawei CFO files lawsuit against Canada police, border official over ‘unconstitutional’ arrest
Huawei’s chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou has filed a lawsuit against Canadian border and police authorities for “violating her constitutional rights” while arresting her at a Vancouver airport at the request of the US late last year.
Her lawyers Howard Mickelson and Allan Doolittle said in a statement on Sunday that Meng, the Chinese tech giant’s CFO and daughter of its founder, suffered “serious breaches of her constitutional rights” during her arrest at the Vancouver International Airport on December 1, 2018.
Meng, the lawyers said, is “seeking damages for misfeasance in public office and false imprisonment” in the lawsuit filed with British Columbia’s Supreme Court on Friday.
Washington has accused Meng of fraud and violating anti-Iran bans. Huawei has, however, rejected any wrongdoing.
The lawsuit says Meng was interrogated by custom officials for three hours without knowing the reason behind her arrest. At the same time, the officials searched through her phone, computer and luggage in breach of Meng’s constitutional rights, it adds.
Meng’s lawyers believe the detention was “unlawful” and “arbitrary.” They are seek damages from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the federal government.
The lawsuit was lodged on the same day that Canada formally launched the process to extradite Huawei’s chief financial officer to the United States.
The extradition process, however, could take several months or even years because Meng has the option to file appeals.
Meng’s arrest sparked a row in Canada’s ties with China, which views the move as politically motivated and related to the rivalry between Washington and Beijing.
Following Meng’s detention, Beijing arrested two Canadian nationals and sentenced a third one to death over drug smuggling charges in what appeared to be a retaliatory move.
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