US Justice Department accuses Huawei of fraud and stealing trade secrets

The US Justice Department has announced a 13-count indictment against Huawei, its CFO Meng Wanzhou, as well as several of Huawei's subsidiaries.

It is accusing the company and Meng Wanzhou of stealing trade secrets and obstructing justice and bank fraud by evading economic sanctions on Iran.

Specifically, prosecutors claim that Huawei misrepresented its relationship with an Iranian affiliate, using this relationship to continue work with banks and officials despite sanctions on Iran by the US.

Prosecutors also say Huawei stole intellectual property from T-Mobile. It violated confidentiality agreements with T-Mobile by stealing information on a robot used to test smartphones.

Ms. Meng was arrested in Vancouver, Canada in early December last year and is now out on bail. She is fighting extradition to the US. Her next court hearing is set for 6 February.

President Trump had earlier suggested that he could grant Ms. Meng freedom in exchange for a trade deal with China, but it remains to be seen if China would accept such a deal. Furthermore, doing so with anger law enforcement officials in the US.

One can only imagine how this will all pan out.

Source: Bloomberg