Daughter Of Huawei Founder Freed, Return To China After Deal With US

Photo: Mark Chan/Unsplash

JAKARTA - After making an agreement with the court, Huawei's chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, who was detained in Canada on charges of fraud, has left the United States (US).

Wanzhou is said to have endured years of diplomatic tension over her fate. She was detained on fraud charges in December 2018 at the request of the US.

"My life has been turned upside down. It was a disturbing time for me. Every cloud has a silver lining. I will never forget all the good wishes I received from people around the world," Wanzhou said after her release.

Shortly after being released under house arrest at her home in Vancouver, Wanzhou then boarded an Air China flight bound for the Chinese city of Shenzhen.

Compiled from BBC International, Saturday, September 25, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) canceled an extradition request for her on Friday.

Wanzhou, daughter of Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei/Photo: China Daily

The US accused Wanzhou of misleading HSBC bank about Huawei's ties to a company called Skycom, putting the bank at risk of violating US sanctions on Iran.

The DOJ said it had reached an agreement on the deferred prosecution. This means that the DOJ will delay the prosecution of Wanzhou until December 2022. If he complies with the conditions set by the court, the case could eventually be dropped.

This allowed Wanzhou to officially deny guilt on the main charge, while also admitting to the charges brought by the US. As part of the deal, Wanzhou agreed to a statement of fact acknowledging that he knowingly made false statements to HSBC.

The DOJ said Wanzhou had carried out a scheme to defraud global financial institutions, and it would continue to prepare for trial against Huawei.

This case of course angered China and strained its relations with the US and Canada. In fact, it sparked accusations that China had detained Canadian citizens in retaliation, which China later denied.

For information, Meng Wanzhou is the eldest daughter of billionaire Ren Zhengfei, who founded Huawei in 1987. The company is now the world's largest maker of telecommunications equipment.

Wanzhou served in the Chinese army for nine years, until 1983, and was also a member of the Chinese Communist Party.