A Chinese officer stands outside a prison in Dalian in northeastern China's Liaoning Province. (AP Photo/Kyoto News, Masao Mizuno)

Canadian set to appear in Chinese court this weekend

A Canadian charged with smuggling drugs will appear in court in China on Saturday.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Thursday that she did not know much about the case, suggesting that it is not related to the arrests of two other Canadians on national security grounds earlier this month.

Chinese state media has identified the man facing the drug charges as Robert Lloyd Schellenberg.

He was arrested four years ago and convicted.

Saturday’s court appearance is part of an appeal process.

China has some of the harshest drug laws in the world and people found guilty of smuggling large quantities of drugs face sentences ranging from 15 years’ imprisonment to life imprisonment and even the death penalty.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Canadians Michael Kovrig, right, and Michael Spavor were arrested for undermining Chinese ‘national security,’ while Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou was arrested ‘illegally’ in Canada for the U.S. (Associated Press/ International Crisis Group/Canadian Press)

A spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada says the ministry has been following the case for several years and has been providing consular to the Canadian citizen since they were first detained in the Chinese province of Liaoning.

Schellenberg’s court appearance comes as Ottawa and Beijing spar over the arrests of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.

Both were arrested earlier this month after Canadian authorities arrested Meng Wanzhou, the CFO of Chinese tech giant Huawei at Vancouver Airport on Dec. 1.

The Canadians were acting at the request of the U.S., which wants her extradicted for what Washington says are violations of international sanctions against Iran through a “hidden Huawei subsidiary called Skycom.”

China has demanded that Meng be released immediately. Ottawa has demanded Beijing release the two Canadians.

With files from CP, CBC, Global News, Globe and Mail, Reuters

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