A former aide to two New York governors has been charged with acting as a secret agent for China and using her positions to promote Beijing’s agenda in exchange for economic benefits of several million dollars which financed two purchases of luxury residences and a Ferrari.
Linda Sun held numerous positions in New York City government, including Deputy Chief of Staff to Governor Kathy Hochul and Deputy Director of Diversity to former Governor Andrew Cuomo.
The woman, 41 years old, She was arrested on Tuesday along with her husband, Chris Hu, at their $4 million Long Island home. Hu was also accused of bank fraud and conspiracy to launder money.
If proven in court, the charges would demonstrate that China has succeeded exert influence at the highest levels of New York state government for almost a decade.
According to the indictment, Linda Sun helped a Chinese official eavesdrop on a conference call and forged Gov. Hochul’s signature as part of a lucrative scheme to advance Beijing’s interests. She faces eight criminal charges, including visa fraud and conspiracy to launder money.
The two defendants pleaded not guilty in federal court on Tuesday. Sun’s bail was set at $1.5 million. The charges were the latest in a yearslong effort by the Justice Department to root out agents of foreign governments who seek to influence American politics, including the recent corruption conviction of former Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey involving official acts that prosecutors said he performed to benefit Egypt and Qatar.
Accusations
In recent years, Washington has accused Chinese citizens not only of illegally promoting Beijing’s interests but also of harassing and intimidating dissidents of the Chinese regime. Last year, the Justice Department charged a pair of men with setting up a secret police station in New York under the direction and control of the Beijing government.
“As alleged, while purporting to serve the people of New York as Deputy Chief of Staff in the New York State Executive Chamber, the defendant and her husband were actually working to advance the interests of the Chinese government and the CCP (Chinese Communist Party),” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace. “The unlawful scheme enriched the defendant’s family to the tune of millions of dollars,” the indictment added.
Beginning in 2012, Sun served in various positions in the administrations of Cuomo and his successor Hochul until She was fired in March 2023 after “evidence of misconduct” was discovered, said a spokesperson.
The case was immediately turned over to federal police. Sun, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in China, worked in New York state government for about 15 years.
Sun’s position provided Beijing with a means to shape and control New York leaders’ views of China, prosecutors said. They claimed he prevented Taiwanese representatives from meeting with New York officials. Beijing claims the self-ruled island as its territory.
Prosecutors did not offer details about how Sun first connected with the Chinese government. Sun and Beijing officials frequently communicated via the messaging app WeChat, sometimes boasting about having stopped meetings with Taiwanese representatives, according to the indictment.
“I value my relationship with the consulate very much and have done many things to make the relationship between the State (of New York) and the consulate flourish,” Sun said in a message to a Chinese official. In response, the official said Sun was the “most important hub connecting us” to Cuomo.
As the Covid-19 pandemic spread in 2020, Sun secretly kept Chinese officials well-informed about New York State’s health response. At one point, he surreptitiously added a Chinese official to a private conference call for members of the New York government about the pandemic, prosecutors said.
Sun would also have sent Unauthorized letters purporting to be from New York officials inviting Chinese government representatives to visit the United StatesChinese representatives used the letters to obtain visas. Sun even forged Hochul’s signature on one of the letters.
In return, Sun tasted the good lifeThe Chinese regime lavished him with millions of dollars, paid for his travels and sent him Nanjing-style salted ducks for dinner, prosecutors said.
The corruption was channeled to Sun’s husband, the owner of a seafood export company and a financial consulting firm, through business transactions in China. Her husband then repatriated the money to the U.S. She and her husband used the cash to buy their $4.1 million home in Manhasset, New York, a condominium on the Hawaiian Islands and luxury cars, including a 2024 Ferrari.