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The Star
5 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
Ex-New York official facing China agent charge indicted for kickbacks
A former top New York official earlier charged with acting as a Chinese agent was handed a second federal indictment alleging she received kickbacks for steering some US$35 million worth of healthcare contracts to favoured suppliers during the coronavirus pandemic, federal prosecutors said on Thursday. The new charges against Linda Sun, 41 – once an aide to New York governors Kathy Hochul and Andrew Cuomo – and against her husband and co-defendant, Chris Hu, 40, included wire fraud, bribery, tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the US. 'As alleged, Linda Sun not only acted as [an] unregistered agent of the government of the People's Republic of China but also enriched herself to the tune of millions of dollars when New York state was at its most vulnerable' during the start of the pandemic, US attorney Joseph Nocella with the Eastern District of New York said in a statement. 'When masks, gloves and other protective supplies were hard to find, Sun abused her position of trust to steer contracts to her associates so that she and her husband could share in the profits,' he added. Details of the superseding indictment were released on Thursday after the additional charges were handed down on Wednesday. As outlined in court documents, in early 2020, Sun and a team of state employees drew on her connections in Beijing to obtain highly sought-after protective gear. But Sun also allegedly claimed falsely that China had recommended two additional vendors, one operated by her second cousin and another operated by her husband and his business associates. Sun reportedly failed to disclose the alleged dealings, which involved routing government contracts worth millions of dollars to each of the two companies, as required in her capacity as a state official. The couple reportedly siphoned off US$2.3 million in kickbacks in 2020 and 2021. 'This husband-and-wife team with supposed ties to corruption has been rooted out,' Harry Chavis, a special investigator with the Internal Revenue Service, said in a statement. 'In legitimate government spending, there is no friends-and-family discount.' The indictment also alleges Sun falsified records to convince New York authorities that Jiangsu province's commerce department had recommended her cousin's company for its 'gold standard' masks and that the 'Chinese chamber of commerce' recommended the second firm operated by her husband and associates for its products. The indictment claims that Sun and Hu failed to declare the US$2.3 million payments to tax authorities and 'laundered the income' by routing three US$500,000 payments to American accounts set up by Hu in the name of a close relative. According to a spreadsheet reportedly found in one of Hu's electronic accounts, the total profits from the two companies that Hu expected to realise totalled US$8,029,741. This week's indictment follows earlier charges of visa fraud, alien smuggling and money laundering against Sun filed last September tied to her allegedly working as an unregistered agent of China during her tenure in state government. Sun and Hu pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges following their arrest last September and were released on US$1.5 million and US$500,000 bonds, respectively. The Chinese embassy in Washington declined to comment on the specifics of the case but pushed back on Sun's alleged links to Beijing. 'The U.S. government and media have frequently hyped up the 'China agent' narratives—many of which were later proven to be entirely unfounded,' said embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu. 'China firmly opposes such ill-intended associating and unfounded smears.' Jarrod Schaeffer, a lawyer for Sun, on Thursday said 'shoving new charges' into an indictment with a trial approaching is 'unfortunate and telling'. 'The newest allegations continue the government's trend of making and publicising feverish accusations unmoored from the facts and evidence that we expect will actually come out at trial,' said Schaeffer, a partner at the New York-based law firm Abell Eskew Landau. 'Ms Sun vehemently denies these latest allegations and intends to vigorously contest them in court.' Ken Abell, a lawyer for Hu, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the charges. During her time working for New York, according to the court filings, Sun allegedly helped shape state policy in exchange for millions of dollars in kickbacks and gifts. That included a 2024 Ferrari Roma sports car and property in Honolulu and on New York's Long Island worth about US$6 million in total, along with specially cooked salted ducks prepared for her parents by the Chinese consulate. Hu allegedly blocked representatives of Taiwan's government from meeting state officials, provided unauthorised invitation letters from the office for Chinese officials and tried to arrange for a high-level New York state official to visit China. Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the US, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-governed island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons . Hu faces earlier charges for money laundering conspiracy, money laundering and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. The defendants, both naturalised US citizens, are due to be arraigned on the latest charges on Monday. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
Yomiuri Shimbun
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Accused of Acting as a Chinese Agent, NY Governors' Ex-Aide Now Faces Pandemic Fraud Charge, Too
NEW YORK (AP) — Already charged with acting as an illicit agent of the Chinese government, a former aide to two New York governors is being accused of illegally profiteering off the state's pandemic-era scramble for face masks. Linda Sun — who worked for Govs. Andrew Cuomo and Kathy Hochul, both Democrats — and husband Chris Hu were indicted Wednesday on bribery and other charges in the alleged mask graft. 'When masks, gloves and other protective supplies were hard to find, Sun abused her position of trust to steer contracts to her associates so that she and her husband could share in the profits,' Brooklyn-based U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said in a statement Thursday. The couple is due to answer those charges in court Monday, and Sun's lawyer said she will vigorously contest the allegations. 'The newest allegations continue the government's trend of making and publicizing feverish accusations unmoored from the facts and evidence that we expect will actually come out at trial,' attorney Jarrod Schaeffer said. Hu's attorneys, Nicole Boeckmann and Seth DuCharme, said they remained confident in him and that prosecutors were 'scrambling to try to come up with some new charging theory' as the trial approached. The couple already pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges of subtly using Sun's state jobs to advance Chinese government perspectives and priorities in exchange for lucrative financial benefits. A trial is set for November. With the new charges, the case now weaves together two significant threads that federal prosecutors have been pulling in recent years: pandemic fraud and rooting out alleged covert agents for China and other countries. The new indictment accuses Sun and Hu of reaping millions in kickbacks by exploiting her role on a Cuomo administration team that procured much-needed personal protective equipment in the spring of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic was taking hold. At the time, New York was a hotspot for the virus and, like other U.S. states and other nations, was scouring the globe for masks and other supplies. A naturalized U.S. citizen born in China, Sun used her homeland ties to help New York wrangle PPE from the country where much of it was made even as exports had dwindled because of China's own battle with the virus. Sun connected the state with vendors the Chinese government recommended. But, according to the indictment, she also forged documents to falsely claim that Chinese contacts had suggested two additional companies. One was run by a second cousin of Sun's, and the other by a business associate of her husband's, the indictment said. Sun didn't disclose those relationships to New York's government, which signed contracts with both companies in March 2020 and went on to pay them over $44 million in all, according to the indictment. The cousin funneled about $2.3 million back to Hu, the indictment said. It doesn't specify whether Hu's associate allegedly paid anything. Hu worked in state government for about 15 years, starting in Cuomo's administration and eventually working for his successor, incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul. Hochul's administration has said it fired Sun in 2023 after 'discovering evidence of misconduct.' Cuomo got national attention in 2020 for his daily pandemic briefings. He has since faced — and vociferously contested — criticism and congressional and federal Justice Department inquiries about his administration's handling of the virus in nursing homes. After resigning amid sexual harassment allegations in 2021, he conceded a Democratic primary race for New York City mayor this week. A message seeking comment on the new charges against Sun was sent to Cuomo's spokesperson. He has previously said Cuomo very rarely interacted with her. Sun also is accused of quietly doing the Chinese government's bidding by, for example, banishing any mention of Chinese human rights issues from a Hochul video celebrating the Lunar New Year. In return for Sun's efforts on China's behalf, prosecutors allege, Hu got assistance with business ventures in China. Prosecutors say the financial boost helped the couple buy multimillion-dollar properties and luxury cars.
Winnipeg Free Press
2 days ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Accused of acting as a Chinese agent, NY governors' ex-aide now faces pandemic fraud charge, too
NEW YORK (AP) — Already charged with acting as an illicit agent of the Chinese government, a former aide to two New York governors is being accused of illegally profiteering off the state's pandemic-era scramble for face masks. Linda Sun — who worked for Govs. Andrew Cuomo and Kathy Hochul, both Democrats — and husband Chris Hu were indicted Wednesday on bribery and other charges in the alleged mask graft. 'When masks, gloves and other protective supplies were hard to find, Sun abused her position of trust to steer contracts to her associates so that she and her husband could share in the profits,' Brooklyn-based U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said in a statement Thursday. The couple is due to answer those charges in court Monday, and Sun's lawyer said she will vigorously contest the allegations. 'The newest allegations continue the government's trend of making and publicizing feverish accusations unmoored from the facts and evidence that we expect will actually come out at trial,' attorney Jarrod Schaeffer said. A message seeking comment was sent to Hu's attorneys. The couple already pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges of subtly using Sun's state jobs to advance Chinese government perspectives and priorities in exchange for lucrative financial benefits. A trial is set for November. With the new charges, the case now weaves together two significant threads that federal prosecutors have been pulling in recent years: pandemic fraud and rooting out alleged covert agents for China and other countries. The new indictment accuses Sun and Hu of reaping millions in kickbacks by exploiting her role on a Cuomo administration team that procured much-needed personal protective equipment in the spring of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic was taking hold. At the time, New York was a hotspot for the virus and, like other U.S. states and other nations, was scouring the globe for masks and other supplies. A naturalized U.S. citizen born in China, Sun used her homeland ties to help New York wrangle PPE from the country where much of it was made even as exports had dwindled because of China's own battle with the virus. Sun connected the state with vendors the Chinese government recommended. But, according to the indictment, she also forged documents to falsely claim that Chinese contacts had suggested two additional companies. One was run by a second cousin of Sun's, and the other by a business associate of her husband's, the indictment said. Sun didn't disclose those relationships to New York's government, which signed contracts with both companies in March 2020 and went on to pay them over $44 million in all, according to the indictment. The cousin funneled about $2.3 million back to Hu, the indictment said. It doesn't specify whether Hu's associate allegedly paid anything. Hu worked in state government for about 15 years, starting in Cuomo's administration and eventually working for his successor, incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul. Hochul's administration has said it fired Sun in 2023 after 'discovering evidence of misconduct.' Cuomo got national attention in 2020 for his daily pandemic briefings. He has since faced — and vociferously contested — criticism and congressional and federal Justice Department inquiries about his administration's handling of the virus in nursing homes. After resigning amid sexual harassment allegations in 2021, he conceded a Democratic primary race for New York City mayor this week. A message seeking comment on the new charges against Sun was sent to Cuomo's spokesperson. He has previously said Cuomo very rarely interacted with her. Sun also is accused of quietly doing the Chinese government's bidding by, for example, banishing any mention of Chinese human rights issues from a Hochul video celebrating the Lunar New Year. In return for Sun's efforts on China's behalf, prosecutors allege, Hu got assistance with business ventures in China. Prosecutors say the financial boost helped the couple buy multimillion-dollar properties and luxury cars.
San Francisco Chronicle
2 days ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Accused of acting as a Chinese agent, NY governors' ex-aide now faces pandemic fraud charge, too
NEW YORK (AP) — Already charged with acting as an illicit agent of the Chinese government, a former aide to two New York governors is being accused of illegally profiteering off the state's pandemic-era scramble for face masks. Linda Sun — who worked for Govs. Andrew Cuomo and Kathy Hochul, both Democrats — and husband Chris Hu were indicted Wednesday on bribery and other charges in the alleged mask graft. 'When masks, gloves and other protective supplies were hard to find, Sun abused her position of trust to steer contracts to her associates so that she and her husband could share in the profits,' Brooklyn-based U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said in a statement Thursday. The couple is due to answer those charges in court Monday, and Sun's lawyer said she will vigorously contest the allegations. 'The newest allegations continue the government's trend of making and publicizing feverish accusations unmoored from the facts and evidence that we expect will actually come out at trial,' attorney Jarrod Schaeffer said. A message seeking comment was sent to Hu's attorneys. The couple already pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges of subtly using Sun's state jobs to advance Chinese government perspectives and priorities in exchange for lucrative financial benefits. A trial is set for November. With the new charges, the case now weaves together two significant threads that federal prosecutors have been pulling in recent years: pandemic fraud and rooting out alleged covert agents for China and other countries. The new indictment accuses Sun and Hu of reaping millions in kickbacks by exploiting her role on a Cuomo administration team that procured much-needed personal protective equipment in the spring of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic was taking hold. At the time, New York was a hotspot for the virus and, like other U.S. states and other nations, was scouring the globe for masks and other supplies. A naturalized U.S. citizen born in China, Sun used her homeland ties to help New York wrangle PPE from the country where much of it was made even as exports had dwindled because of China's own battle with the virus. Sun connected the state with vendors the Chinese government recommended. But, according to the indictment, she also forged documents to falsely claim that Chinese contacts had suggested two additional companies. One was run by a second cousin of Sun's, and the other by a business associate of her husband's, the indictment said. Sun didn't disclose those relationships to New York's government, which signed contracts with both companies in March 2020 and went on to pay them over $44 million in all, according to the indictment. The cousin funneled about $2.3 million back to Hu, the indictment said. It doesn't specify whether Hu's associate allegedly paid anything. Hu worked in state government for about 15 years, starting in Cuomo's administration and eventually working for his successor, incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul. Hochul's administration has said it fired Sun in 2023 after 'discovering evidence of misconduct.' Cuomo got national attention in 2020 for his daily pandemic briefings. He has since faced — and vociferously contested — criticism and congressional and federal Justice Department inquiries about his administration's handling of the virus in nursing homes. After resigning amid sexual harassment allegations in 2021, he conceded a Democratic primary race for New York City mayor this week. A message seeking comment on the new charges against Sun was sent to Cuomo's spokesperson. He has previously said Cuomo very rarely interacted with her.
Miami Herald
4 days ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Iran Should ‘Rethink' Nuclear Ambitions: China State Media Pundit
Iran's leadership should reconsider its nuclear ambitions and settle for the symbolic win after its retaliatory strikes against the United States, a prominent Chinese commentator said on Tuesday as oil prices dropped for the first time in a week amid a shaky ceasefire announced by President Donald Trump. "Iranian activities associated with the manufacture of nuclear weapons, even if they are for civilian use, will be difficult to continue in the future. From a realist perspective, Iran should rethink its nuclear path," said former Global Times editor Hu Xijin, who led the nationalistic state-run newspaper from 2005-2021. Hu's comments, aimed at nearly 25 million followers on China's X-like microblogging website Weibo, are not directly representative of the Chinese government's views. However, the prolific public commentator is one of China's best-know propagandists and his posts credibly capture part of the mood in the country. China is a major extra-regional stakeholder in stability in the Middle East, where over half of its oil imports originate-some covertly from Iran. It has been Tehran's largest trading partner for over a decade, including for sanctioned goods like military hardware and material to make missile propellant. Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, D.C., told Newsweek: "The Persian Gulf and nearby waters are an important route for international trade in goods and energy. Keeping the region safe and stable serves the common interests of the international community." Iran was the "biggest loser" in the conflict with Israel and the United States, Hu said, citing the heavy blow dealt to its civil-military infrastructure and the killing of several leaders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, followed by the U.S. bombing of three nuclear facilities over the weekend. The final days of the Israel-Iran conflict were "performative," with both nations and the U.S. emerging with something to call a "victory," according to Hu, who posted his thoughts after Trump declared what is currently a vulnerable and uncertain ceasefire. Tehran "did not have sufficient strength and international support to contain the U.S.-Israeli threat, ultimately placing itself in an untenable and dangerous situation," he said while urging the Chinese public to support Beijing's military buildup "Strength is the ultimate universal language of all showdowns in this world. Remember," Hu said. On Monday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told former British Prime Minister Tony Blair-visiting China for a World Economic Forum event-that Israel and the United States had "set a dangerous precedent with serious consequences" by conducting preemptive strikes based on "potential future threats." "Peace requires strength to defend, but strength alone does not guarantee true peace," Wang said. "All parties to the conflict should take steps to de-escalate the situation, return to the path of political dialogue and negotiation, and work to restore peace and stability in the Middle East." Hu Xijin, former editor of China's Global Times newspaper: "Our planet is still not one that runs on reason. Some hard security dilemmas cannot be resolved, and war is still the way acute problems explode. In the end, power decides who wins and who loses. "Iran has its own ambitions, but not enough power and too big an appetite, as if political rhetoric can make up for the shortcomings of strength. It suffered big losses as a result and finally had to seek compromise with the United States and Israel." Oil prices have come down to under $70 a barrel after Trump indicated the U.S. airstrikes on Iran on Sunday were a once-off, for now. But with Israel and Iran yet to fully settle into the U.S.-brokered ceasefire, all options, including Tehran's threat to close energy shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, remain a possibility. Such a move would likely cause a spike in crude oil prices, hurting major importers like China. Oil prices peaked past $100 per barrel in March 2022 in the immediate aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. If prices reach the same or similar levels because of conflict in the Middle East, it could benefit America's adversaries, Trump said in a social media post on Monday. Related Articles ICE Arrests 11 Iranian Nationals in US Amid Fears of Secret Terror CellsTrump Rejected Putin's Iran Offer: 'I Need Help With You'The 1600: Carlo vs. Carlo ReturnsTucker Carlson Claims MAGA Victory Over Ted Cruz, Mark Levin 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
