|
Linda Sun, 41, and her husband Chris Hu, 40, pleaded not guilty
to criminal charges before U.S. Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo in
Brooklyn, after being arrested on Tuesday morning.
Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn said that while working in state
government, Sun blocked representatives of the Taiwanese
government from meeting with officials, and sought to arrange
for a high-level New York state official to visit China.
In exchange, Chinese government representatives allegedly
arranged for millions of dollars in transactions for Hu, who had
business activities in China.
Prosecutors said Sun and Hu used money to buy a 2024 Ferrari
Roma sports car, as well as property on New York's Long Island
and in Honolulu worth about $6 million, prosecutors said
Other gifts included Nanjing-style salted ducks prepared by a
Chinese government official's personal chef and delivered to the
home of Sun's parents, prosecutors said.
Hochul was not accused of any wrongdoing. Her office fired Sun
in March 2023 after discovering evidence of misconduct, reported
Sun's actions immediately to authorities, and has assisted law
enforcement throughout the process, a spokesperson for the
governor said.
Kuo ordered Sun released on $1.5 million bond and Hu on $500,000
bond. Their next court appearance is Sept. 25.
"Our client is understandably upset that these charges have been
brought," Sun's lawyer Jarrod Schaeffer told reporters after the
hearing.
A spokesman for China's embassy in Washington did not respond to
a request for comment.
Sun became Hochul's deputy chief of staff in September 2021,
after working in various state agencies.
The U.S. Department of Justice has in recent years cracked down
on people accused of working on behalf of adversaries such as
China and Russia, without registering with the U.S. government
as required by law.
Last month, Chinese academic Wang Shujun was convicted in
federal court in Brooklyn of collecting information about New
York-based activists supporting democracy in China, and sharing
his findings with Beijing.
Sun faces eight counts, including failure to register under the
Foreign Agents Registration Act and money laundering conspiracy.
Hu faces three counts, including bank fraud conspiracy.
(Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Mark Porter and
Jonathan Oatis)
[© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
Copyright 2022 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
