New York governor's ex-aide charged as agent of China

A erstwhile adjutant to New York politician Kathy Hochul has been charged with acting arsenic an cause of the Chinese government.

Linda Sun, 41, "acted astatine the order, direction, oregon request" of China during her 14-year authorities authorities vocation successful instrumentality for millions of dollars, a national indictment alleges. Her husband, Christopher Hu, is besides accused of being a Chinese agent.

The mates were arrested astatine their $3.5m (£2.7m) Long Island location connected Tuesday, months aft it was raided arsenic portion of an FBI investigation.

Ms Sun was sacked astir 2 years agone aft the bureau of Ms Hochul, who became politician successful 2021, discovered "evidence of misconduct" and reported it to the authorities.

The brace were owed to look a Brooklyn national tribunal connected charges including violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, bringing successful aliens and wealth laundering conspiracy.

Prosecutors accidental that Ms Sun acted arsenic "an undisclosed cause of the Chinese government", portion her hubby "facilitated the transportation of millions of dollars successful kickbacks for idiosyncratic gain".

She is alleged to person blocked representatives of Taiwan's authorities from speaking to New York officials, provided unauthorised invitation letters to the US for Chinese officials and changed authorities officials' messaging astir China.

Christie Curtis, the acting adjunct manager of the FBI, said Ms Sun "wielded her position... to covertly promote" the Chinese agenda, "directly threatening our country's nationalist security".

In return, prosecutors assertion Ms Sun was fixed rewards totalling millions of dollars. They were besides fixed amusement tickets, question perks and nutrient including, according to the indictment, meals of Nanjing-style salted duck.

The mates laundered ample amounts of wealth to bargain luxuries including a Ferrari sports car and spot successful Hawaii and New York, the indictment says.

"The illicit strategy enriched the defendant's household to the tune of millions of dollars," said US Attorney Breon Peace.

The indictment says Mr Hu operated respective businesses successful New York, including a seafood exporter, a vino store and a fiscal consultancy, and often relied connected the services of an authorised freight cause of the Chinese government.

Ms Sun had held aggregate high-ranking posts successful the state's enforcement subdivision and authorities agencies since 2012, and served arsenic Ms Hochul's lawman main of unit for astir a twelvemonth earlier she was sacked successful 2023.

The governor's bureau said Ms Sun had been primitively employed by the erstwhile medication of Andrew Cuomo, who discontinue successful August 2021 amid allegations of intersexual misconduct.

"This idiosyncratic was hired by the enforcement enclosure much than a decennary ago," a spokesperson told the BBC.

"We terminated her employment successful March 2023 aft discovering grounds of misconduct, instantly reported her actions to instrumentality enforcement and person assisted instrumentality enforcement passim this process."

The FBI raided the couple's $3.5m (£2.7m) location successful July.