Canadian Robert Lloyd Schellenberg (front row L) during a retrial for drug trafficking charges in a court in Dalian, Liaoning Province, northeast China.
Handout / Dalian Intermediate People’s Court /
- On Tuesday, a Chinese court rejected the Canadian Robert Schellenberg’s appeal to the death penalty for drug smuggling.
- Schellenberg’s verdict came at a time when the relationship between the two countries remained frozen after the arrest of Huawei’s executives in Canada at the end of 2018.
- China warned that unless Meng is released, the consequences are unclear.
On Tuesday, a Chinese court rejected the Canadian Robert Schellenberg’s appeal to the death penalty for drug smuggling.
Schellenberg’s verdict came at a time when the relationship between the two countries remained frozen after the arrest of Huawei’s executives in Canada at the end of 2018.
Schellenberg was detained by Chinese authorities in December 2014, accused of drug smuggling in January 2015, and sentenced to 15 years in prison on November 28, 2018.
A few days later, on December 1, Canada detained Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies, in Vancouver in accordance with an extradition order from the United States.
China warned that unless Meng is released, the consequences are unclear.
On December 29, a Chinese court ordered a retrial of Schellenberg’s case when he appealed against 15 years of imprisonment.
In January 2019, the Intermediate People’s Court of Dalian City, Liaoning Province, China retrial and sentenced Schellenberg to death.
The court heard Schellenberg’s appeal against the death sentence in May last year and confirmed the sentence on Tuesday.
Beijing lawyers told Reuters that increasing the penalty after the appeal violated the spirit of China’s procedural law.
Two other Canadians were accused of espionage and tried.
According to a Canadian source who is directly familiar with the matter, the verdict on one of the businessmen, Michael Spavor, is expected to be announced as early as Wednesday.
Another source familiar with the matter confirmed that Spavor’s sentence will expire this week.
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