Linda Sun, a former adviser to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, schemed to advance China's interests while working for the New York state government, federal prosecutors alleged in an indictment unsealed Tuesday.
The indictment accuses Sun of failing to register as a foreign agent, visa fraud, human smuggling and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
MORE: Lawmakers cite research showing Chinese government uses TikTok to influence US users
Prosecutors allege her husband, Christopher Hu, facilitated the transfer of millions of dollars in bribes for personal gain.
Sun and her husband were arrested Tuesday morning at their Long Island home, according to federal prosecutors from the Eastern District of New York and the FBI. The FBI had searched the Manhasset home in July.
Both are due to appear in federal court in Brooklyn on Tuesday afternoon. It was not immediately clear whether they are represented by lawyers.
According to Avi Small, Hochul's spokesman, Sun was hired by the Executive Chamber more than a decade ago before being fired last year.
“We terminated her in March 2023 after discovering evidence of misconduct. We immediately reported her actions to law enforcement and have assisted law enforcement throughout this process,” Small said in a statement to ABC News.
Sun worked in state government for about 15 years before being fired last year as deputy commissioner for strategic business development at the New York State Department of Labor. She previously served as deputy chief of staff to Hochul and in the administration of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
The complaint alleges that Sun, at the request of Chinese government officials and representatives of the Chinese Communist Party, blocked Taiwanese government officials from accessing senior New York State officials, altered New York State officials' reporting on China, and arranged meetings for visiting Chinese government delegations with New York State officials.
MORE: New York Mayor Eric Adams Receives More Grand Jury Subpoenas in Corruption Probe
In exchange for these and other actions, Sun allegedly received economic and other benefits from China, including facilitating millions of dollars in transactions for Hu's China-based business operations; travel reimbursements; event tickets; promotion of the business of a close family friend; employment for Sun's cousin in the PRC; and Nanjing-style salted ducks prepared by the personal chef of a PRC official, which were delivered to Sun's parents' home, the indictment said.
“As alleged, while serving the people of New York as Deputy Chief of Staff in the New York State Executive Chamber, defendant and her husband actually worked to advance the interests of the Chinese government and the CCP,” U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement. “The illegal scheme enriched defendant’s family by millions of dollars.”
Linda Sun, former aide to Kathy Hochul, charged with conspiracy to advance China's interests originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
