The former high-ranking aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul and Andrew Cuomo accused of working as a Chinese agent reaped luxurious gifts and rewards from her clandestine double life, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.
Linda Sun, 41, and her husband Christopher Hu, 40, faces charges of violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling and money laundering conspiracy, according to a newly-unsealed indictment in Brooklyn federal court.
In exchange for advancing Beijing’s agenda in New York, the feds allege that Sun and Hu received millions of dollars in shady kickbacks and laundered it to buy a $4.1 million Manhasset mansion, a $2 million Honolulu luxury condo and a fleet of luxury cars, including a 2024 Ferrari Roma.
But the Chinese government’s gravy train allegedly didn’t stop there. Among the gifts that grateful Chinese officials lavished on Sun and her family, according to the indictment, are:
‘Nanjing-style salted ducks’
The indictment states that the personal chef for “PRC Official 1” — believed to be Chinese Consul General in New York Huang Ping — cooked up Nanjing-style salted ducks that were then delivered to Sun’s parents’ home.
Sun and her family received six salted ducks from the chef around July 28, 2021, and another six that November, the feds allege.
They got even more of the duck dishes around March 15, 2022, and then again that November, too, according to the court documents.
Additionally, the high-ranking Chinese consulate official hosted Sun and her family for dinner at his home.
Choice concert tickets, travel
Sun, her family and Hu scored choice concert tickets, including to the Chinese National Traditional Orchestra concert at Carnegie Hall in December 2015, the indictment states.
They also received six tickets to the Guangzhou Ballet performance at Lincoln Center on Aug. 17, 2019, the court papers say.
The feds also say that Chinese officials gifted Sun six tickets with VIP suite access to an unspecified sporting event in August 2022.
Other perks included paid-for travel to China, including reserving a presidential hotel suite previously used by First Lady Michelle Obama during her stay in Beijing, and a job for one of Sun’s cousins.
Sprawling homes and luxury cars
Hu’s business ventures in China also benefited from Sun’s political double-dealings, and ended up generating millions that he funneled to the US as part of a money laundering scheme, the indictment contends.
His Queens-based seafood company and wine store, meanwhile, officially made little money, the documents state.
Despite making modest incomes on paper, Hu and Sun bought the Long Island mansion, the ocean-view condo in Hawaii, a 2024 Ferrari Roma, a 2024 Range Rover/L460 and a 2022 Mercedes GLB250W4, according to documents.
Prosecutors have moved to seize the properties and cars, along with roughly $210,000 in cash and money from various accounts.
