Huawei Defense Disputes Criminal Intent in US Federal Trial

It comes after a US government lawyer told federal jurors on the opening day that Huawei engaged in criminal activities to achieve “growth at any cost”, while a lawyer for the company said that the employee who photographed Fujitsu networking equipment after hours at a 2004 trade show was subsequently punished for the “foolish act”.

Brian Heberlig, of US law firm Steptoe, also said on Wednesday in his opening statement that the 2021 admission of Huawei Technologies’ executive Meng Wanzhou to violating US sanctions on Iran should not be viewed as a “confession” as Meng did not admit to deliberately deceiving any government officials or banks, or that anyone else at Huawei acted with criminal intent.

The remarks were a response to the opening statement by the federal prosecution, which highlighted Meng’s admission made “under oath” as key evidence that Huawei became one of the world’s leading telecoms companies through “theft, lies [and] cover-ups”.

Justice Department lawyer Taylor Stout told jurors that a “culture of crime” had existed at Huawei for over 20 years, stemming from the top leadership including founder Ren Zhengfei and his daughter Meng.