New York governor employed Chinese ’agent’ as aide - prosecutors

New York Governor Kathy Hochul's former deputy chief of staff has been charged with acting as an undisclosed agent for the Chinese government. The aide and her husband are accused of influencing Hochul's policies to serve the interests of Beijing, while laundering millions of dollars in the process.

Linda Sun and her husband, Chris Hu, were arrested by FBI agents at their $3.5 million Long Island home on Tuesday, the Associated Press reported. The pair appeared in court later that afternoon, where Sun was charged with acting as an undisclosed Chinese agent, visa fraud, alien smuggling, and money laundering conspiracy, according to the US Attorney's Office in Brooklyn.

Hu was charged with money laundering conspiracy, as well as conspiracy to commit bank fraud and misuse of means of identification.

Sun worked in New York's Democrat-run government for 15 years, holding posts in former Governor Andrew Cuomo's administration before becoming Hochul's deputy chief of staff. 

During this time, prosecutors claim that she used her position to deny politicians from Taiwan access to Hochul's administration, changed official messaging to match the stance of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and sent unauthorized invitation letters to Chinese politicians, resulting in them entering the US illegally.

In return, Sun allegedly received millions of dollars from the CCP, which Hu laundered and used to purchase property in Hawaii and New York worth more than $6 million and a 2024 Ferrari. The couple's family in China also received help with their businesses, tickets to exclusive events, and chef-prepared food delivered to their homes, the indictment alleges.

Hochul's office claimed that Sun was fired once the governor became aware of her alleged offenses. "We terminated her employment in March 2023 after discovering evidence of misconduct, immediately reported her actions to law enforcement and have assisted law enforcement throughout this process," a spokesperson said in a statement to the Associated Press. 

The Chinese government has not commented on the allegations. Beijing usually denies Western allegations of espionage, and has repeatedly accused American politicians of using such charges to "smear" China's reputation.

Hochul is not the first prominent Democrat to have become entangled in an apparent Chinese espionage scheme. The late California Senator Dianne Feinstein employed an alleged Chinese spy as her driver for two decades, during which time she sat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. Another suspected agent, Christine Fang, reportedly slept with two Democratic mayors and worked her way into the confidences of multiple California politicians between 2011 and 2015, including Rep. Eric Swalwell - an ex-member of the House Intelligence Committee who rose to prominence by championing the 'Russiagate' conspiracy theory against former President Donald Trump.