Former top aide to New York Gov. Hochul charged with acting as foreign agent for China
A former top aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul was arrested Tuesday on federal criminal charges accusing her of acting as an undisclosed agent of China and the Chinese Communist Party, and of laundering millions of dollars for China.
Linda Sun, who had been deputy chief of staff to Hochul for a year in addition to holding other state government positions, is charged with violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling, and money laundering conspiracy.
Sun’s husband, 40-year-old businessman Chris Hu, also was arrested on charges of money laundering conspiracy, as well as conspiracy to commit bank fraud and misuse of means of identification.
The couple, who were arrested by FBI agents at their home on Long Island, appeared Tuesday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New York, where they both pleaded not guilty.
Sun was released on a $1.5 million bond, and Hu was released on a $500,000 bond. Sun also was ordered not to have any contact with the consulate and mission of the People’s Republic of China.
Prosecutors say the couple laundered the proceeds of their alleged scheme to buy a $4.1 million home in Manhasset, Long Island, a $2.1 million condominium in Honolulu and luxury automobiles that include at 2024 Ferrari.
An indictment unsealed Tuesday alleges that the 41-year-old Sun, while working in the governor’s office under Hochul and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and in multiple state agencies, also acted as an undisclosed agent for the People’s Republic of China, where she was born.