Huawei has accused the U.S. government of “using every tool at its disposal” including “unscrupulous” tactics “to disrupt its normal business operations and those of its partners.
The company issued a statement Tuesday in response to The Wall Street Journal article last week that said the DOJ is probing Huawei over new technology theft allegations. The reported allegations are distinct from the charges the U.S. brought against Huawei in January, according to the Journal, which included alleged fraud involving Huawei’s CFO Meng Wanzhou and alleged theft from T-Mobile.
Sources said that the new inquiries into Huawei, including a subpoena from federal prosecutors from the Eastern District of New York, overlap with allegations of intellectual property theft previously uncovered in a Journal investigation. Prosecutors are looking into Huawei’s recruitment strategies from rival companies and alleged theft of technology from a Portuguese multimedia producer, according to the Journal.
READ ALSO: Huawei’s Founder to Kick off Five-year Overhaul of Company
In its statement, Huawei said it “categorically rejects” the claims by the producer, Rui Pedro Oliviera, and said he “is taking advantage of the current geopolitical situation. He is pushing a false narrative through the media in an attempt to capitalize on a dispute. This type of behavior should not be encouraged, nor should it be considered rational justification for a criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.”
Huawei also said “the U.S. government has been leveraging its political and diplomatic influence to lobby other governments to ban Huawei equipment.” The company claimed the U.S. government has “unlawfully” searched and detained Huawei employees and partners, launched cyber attacks into Huawei’s internal systems and told law enforcement officials to “threaten, menace, coerce, entice, and incite both current and former Huawei employees to turn against the company and work for them.”
The DOJ and Oliviera did not immediately respond to requests for comment as at the time of filing this report.
Samson Oyedeyi
