UPDATE 1-U.S. prosecutors seek to disqualify Huawei defense lawyer -filing

U.S. prosecutors on Thursday filed a motion to disqualify the lead defense lawyer for Huawei Technologies Co Ltd from the case against the Chinese company for alleged bank fraud and sanctions violations, according to a filing in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New York. The lawyer, James Cole, is a former deputy attorney general of the United States.

The government did not make public why it is seeking to remove Cole from the case. In a letter to the court, prosecutors said they had filed a sealed, classified motion to disqualify Cole and expected to file a public version by May 10.

Cole did not immediately return a call for comment. (Reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by Sandra Maler and Leslie Adler)