VANCOUVER - The Department of Justice says the allegations against Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou would be a crime in Canada and she should be extradited to the United States on fraud charges.
The department says in court documents that the allegations meet the crucial extradition test of "double criminality," meaning that if they had occurred in Canada they would be criminal under Canadian law.
The U.S. alleges that Meng lied to HSBC about Huawei's relationship with an affiliate that was doing business in Iran, putting the bank at risk of violating U.S. sanctions against the country.
Her legal team has argued the alleged misrepresentations do not amount to fraud and says the case is really about the U.S. trying to enforce its sanctions against Iran even though Canada has no such sanctions.
Lawyers for the Department of Justice say in the court documents released today that Meng's alleged conduct put the bank at risk of economic loss and is sufficient to make a case of fraud in Canada.
The Huawei chief financial officer denies the allegations and is free on bail, living in one of her two multimillion-dollar homes in Vancouver, ahead of a hearing set to begin Jan. 20 that will focus on the double-criminality test.
