Polish authorities arrest Huawei director on suspicion of espionage

Polish intelligence has raided the office of Chinese electronics manufacturer Huawei. The sales director of Huawei Poland and a Polish employee of Orange were arrested in the action.

The Chinese sales director of Huawei Poland and the Orange employee are accused of espionage. If found guilty, they could face up to ten years in prison. Officially, the Polish government reports that it concerns a Chinese and Polish man. Polish media say it is Weijing Wang, the sales director of the Polish division of the Chinese company.

According to TVP, the Orange employee was a senior officer of the ABW internal security service in the past. The arrest took place on Tuesday at the home of the suspects and at the same time the police raided the offices of Huawei and Orange. On Thursday, the judge decided to extend the detention of the suspects by three months.

According to the Polish authorities, the operation is the result of a lengthy and thorough investigation into the suspects’ espionage activities. Documents and storage media were seized during raids, which Poland’s intelligence service will analyze.

The Chinese government tells Reuters it is “very concerned” about the arrest and urges the Polish authorities to handle the case “with care”. It is a new action in a series of a Western action against Huawei. The Americans in particular have accused Huawei of spying for Beijing for years, something the company has always denied.

In several countries, including the US, UK, Australia and Japan, the use of Huawei network equipment has been scaled back amid fears of espionage. In Canada, the company’s CFO was arrested last month, but not on suspicion of espionage but for circumventing US sanctions against Iran.