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VANCOUVER: The Canadian border official who questioned Huawei’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, before police arrested her two years ago, told a court on Friday that he was “flushed” when he realized he was mistaken the passwords of their telephones to the police.
Defense attorney Mona Duckett asked Scott Kirkland, an officer with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), why the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had access codes and identifying details on the two mobile phones and Meng’s computer that Kirkland had jotted down.
“It was heartbreaking to realize that I had made that mistake,” Kirkland said, adding that he was “flushed” over the mistake.
This week’s witness cross-examination is part of Meng’s extradition hearing in the United States, where Meng’s lawyers have attempted to back up his claims that his rights were abused during his arrest process and mistakes were made, such as sharing your passwords.
Canadian government prosecutors have tried to show that Meng’s arrest was made according to the rules and that any loophole in due process should not affect the validity of his extradition.
Meng, 48, was arrested with a US warrant in December 2018 while making a layover at the Vancouver airport, bound for Mexico. The United States charged her with bank fraud, accusing her of misleading HSBC about Huawei Technologies Co Ltd’s business in Iran, causing the bank to breach US sanctions.
Meng has said she is innocent and is fighting the charges from Vancouver, where she is under house arrest, monitored by private security at her home in the upscale Shaughnessy neighborhood.
Meng scored a small victory Thursday when British Columbia Deputy Chief Justice Heather Holmes sided with her on some claims, but did not dismiss the extradition case entirely.
Meng’s lawyers have argued that the abuses of the process occurred in the three hours between the CBSA that intercepted her and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police that arrested her.
Kirkland testified Thursday that he was concerned about possible civil rights violations if the agency interviewed Meng before his arrest by Canadian police. He did not raise those concerns during the “hasty discussion” held before Meng’s flight landed.
Meng’s arrest has strained diplomatic relations between Ottawa and Beijing. Shortly after their arrest, China arrested two Canadian citizens on espionage charges.
Prosecutors said Thursday that witness testimony had been slower than expected. The court is likely to schedule at least one more week of hearings, in addition to a second week already scheduled for late November.
One more witness was to testify after Kirkland on Friday.
Meng’s extradition hearings are set to conclude in April 2021, although the possibility of appeals means the case could drag on for years.
– Reuters
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