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RCMP, CBSA say they never searched Meng Wanzhou’s phones or electronic devices

Jun 5, 2019 | 11:56 AM

VANCOUVER — Lawyers for the RCMP and Canadian Border Services Agency deny allegations their officers searched Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou’s phones and electronic devices after a border official wrote down her passwords.

In a joint response filed Monday to Meng’s civil lawsuit, the agencies say a border officer asked Meng for her phone numbers and passwords in case he was required to search the devices for customs or immigration purposes, but neither border officials nor RCMP officers examine their contents.

The response says the RCMP and the U.S. Department of Justice never requested or suggested that border officials pursue any particular line of questioning before Meng was presented with an American extradition order, read her rights and arrested at Vancouver’s airport on Dec. 1.