A former top aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul was arrested Tuesday morning on federal criminal charges, accused of acting as an agent of China and the Chinese Communist Party and of pocketing millions of dollars, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn said.
Linda Sun, 41, and her husband, Christopher Hu, 40, were taken into custody a month and a half after the FBI searched their home in the Long Island hamlet of Manhasset in late July. They are charged with violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling, and money laundering conspiracy.
Sun and Hu enriched themselves “to the tune of millions of dollars,” according to Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Breon Peace. Authorities alleged that this money helped them purchase their $3.6 million home in Manhasset, as well as a $2.1 million condo in Honolulu.
Prosecutors detailed other alleged perks, including “Nanjing-style salted ducks” prepared by the personal chef of a Chinese government official and sent to Sun’s parents’ home.
“Sun wielded her position of influence among executives to covertly promote PRC [People’s Republic of China] and CCP [Chinese Communist Party] agendas, directly threatening our country’s national security,” Peace added in a statement.
Sun had served as deputy chief of staff to Hochul for a year, in addition to holding other state government positions.
While working in state government, Sun allegedly blocked representatives of the Taiwanese government from meeting with officials and attempted to arrange for a high-level New York state official to visit China.
“Sun was hired by the Executive Chamber more than a decade ago. 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,” Hochul’s press secretary, Avi Small, said in a statement.
Prior to her roles in the Hochul administration, Sun held several positions in the Andrew Cuomo administration, including a high-ranking post in the state’s economic development branch that involved organizing international trade missions, according to her LinkedIn account.
Sun also previously served as chief of staff to then-Assemblymember Grace Meng, who is now in Congress.