Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou made an appearance before the BC Supreme Court on Monday morning via telephone.
Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes oversaw the virtual case management hearing and ordered that Meng must appear before the court again on June 15.
Justice Holmes told the court that she would be giving three days notice before handing down a decision on the double-criminality dispute at the heart of Meng’s defense.
On the day of the decision, prosecutors and the defense will receive a copy of the ruling and the media will be informed on the matter in a 10 a.m. lockup shortly after. Holmes did not provide a date for when her decision will be made.
US authorities are seeking to have Meng extradited to the US over a number of bank and wire fraud charges related to Huawei’s alleged dealings with Iran, contravening American sanctions.
Meng’s lawyers are challenging the US extradition order on the basis of not meeting the requirement of double criminality. Meng’s lawyers claim that since the allegations are related to US sanctions, the charges do not apply in Canada.
Crown prosecutors must first prove to the court that Meng’s actions constituted a crime in Canada before the extradition hearing can move forward.
Since Meng’s arrest at the Vancouver International Airport on December 1, 2018, Chinese-Canadian relations have chilled.
Shortly after Meng’s capture, the Chinese government retaliated against Canada by unlawfully detaining two Canadian citizens on trumped-up espionage charges.
Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig have been held in a Chinese prison for over 500 days, where they have been subject to continuous interrogation. They have also been denied access to consular visits by the Canadian embassy.
Meanwhile, Meng has been held under supervision at her multi-million dollar Vancouver mansion. In a letter marking her year spent under house arrest, Meng complained that her time reading books “from cover to cover” and completing oil paintings were “the worst days of [her] life.”
“The past year has witnessed moments of fear, pain, disappointment, helplessness, torment, and struggle,” wrote Meng.
“Right now, time seems to pass slowly. It is so slow that I have enough time to read a book from cover to cover. I can take the time to discuss minutiae with my colleagues or to carefully complete an oil painting.”
