Huawei CFO faces 30 years in jail for fraud

Huawei, more specifically its CFO Meng Wanzhou, is standing trial for fraud.

Meng is facing extradition to the US from Canada, after she was arrested on Saturday. According to The Star Vancouver, she is facing extradition to the US for conspiring to defraud banking institutions.

Many lined up to see Meng’s bail hearing on Saturday, after the extremely high-profile arrest that signified the first major break in a US probe that has mostly been kept from the public. Meng is also the daughter of Huawei’s founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei, a former People’s Liberation Army engineer whose connection to the Chinese Communist Party has contributed to the suspicions of US intelligence agencies. She also serves as deputy chair on Huawei’s board.

The US has an arrest warrant out for Meng that was issued by a New York court on August 22. It has 60 days from the time of Meng’s arrest on Saturday to provide Canadian courts with evidence and intent.

Related: Huawei’s chief financial officer arrested in Canada

Meng served on the board for a Hong Kong-based company called Skycom, which allegedly did business with Iran between 2009 and 2014, reported The Verge. US banks worked with Huawei at this time, so Iran sanctions were violated indirectly and Meng therefore committed fraud against these banks. Skycom reportedly had connections to Huawei and at the bail hearing today, Gibb-Carsley argued that Skycom was an unofficial subsidiary of Huawei’s, using the same company logo. “Huawei is SkyCom,” he said. “This is the crux, I say, of the alleged fraud.”

Huawei’s comment on the arrest to The Verge was: “The company has been provided very little information regarding the charges and is not aware of any wrongdoing by Ms Meng. The company believes the Canadian and US legal systems will ultimately reach a just conclusion. Huawei complies with all applicable laws and regulations where it operates, including applicable export control and sanction laws and regulations of the UN, US and EU.”

In Huawei and Meng’s defense, her lawyer, David Martin, introduced a 2013 PowerPoint presentation that Meng had once given to explain to a bank in Hong Kong that Huawei had not violated any US sanctions.

Article source: https://www.samaa.tv/technology/2018/12/huawei-cfo-faces-30-years-in-jail-for-fraud/