Linda Sun, former Kathy Hochul aide, accused of scheming to advance interests of China
Jose A. Alvarado Jr./Bloomberg via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Linda Sun, a former aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, schemed to advance the interests of China while working in New York State government, federal prosecutors alleged in an indictment unsealed Tuesday.
The indictment charges Sun with failure to register as a foreign agent, visa fraud, alien smuggling and money laundering conspiracy.
Her husband, Christopher Hu, allegedly facilitated the transfer of millions of dollars in kickbacks for personal gain, prosecutors said.
Sun and her husband were arrested at their Long Island home Tuesday morning, according to federal prosecutors from the Eastern District of New York and the FBI. The FBI had searched the Manhasset home in July.
Both are due in Brooklyn federal court Tuesday afternoon. It was not immediately clear whether they are represented by attorneys.
Sun was hired by the Executive Chamber more than a decade ago, before being fired last year, according to Avi Small, Hochul’s press secretary.
“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,” Small said in a statement to ABC News.
Sun worked in state government for about 15 years before she was fired last year from her job as deputy commissioner for strategic business development at the New York State Department of Labor. She previously served as Hochul’s deputy chief of staff and in the administration of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
The indictment alleges that, acting at the request of Chinese government officials and representatives of the Chinese Communist Party, Sun blocked Taiwanese government officials from having access to high-level New York State officers, changed New York State officers’ messaging about China and arranged meetings for visiting delegations from the PRC government with New York State government officials.
In return for these and other actions, Sun allegedly received economic and other benefits from China, including the facilitation of millions of dollars in transactions for the China-based business activities of Hu; travel benefits; tickets to events; promotion of a close family friend’s business; employment for Sun’s cousin in the PRC; and Nanjing-style salted ducks prepared by a PRC government official’s personal chef that were delivered to the residence of Sun’s parents, according to the indictment.
“As alleged, while appearing to serve the people of New York as Deputy Chief of Staff within the New York State Executive Chamber, the defendant and her husband actually worked to further the interests of the Chinese government and the CCP,” United States Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement. “The illicit scheme enriched the defendant’s family to the tune of millions of dollars.”
(WASHINGTON) — Former President Donald Trump said Sunday that he doesn’t see himself running for president again if he loses in November.
“No, I don’t. No, I don’t,” Trump responded to Sinclair Broadcast Group’s “Full Measure” host Sharyl Attkisson’s question about another run. “I don’t see that at all. I think that, hopefully, we’re going to be successful,” he said.
With President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 election, Trump is now the oldest presidential nominee in history as age and mental acuity have become focal points in this year’s election cycle.
During his third presidential bid, Trump has balanced his courtroom appearances in the four criminal cases he faces with campaign stops.
As he lays out the stakes for the 2024 election, Trump often emphasizes his point by describing the turmoil that has he and his campaign have faced over the course of the cycle.
“I didn’t need this. I had a very nice life. I didn’t need to go through court systems and go through all the other stuff and run at the same time,” Trump told tech entrepreneur Elon Musk during a livestream conversation in August when asked why he decided to launch another presidential bid.
“But if I had to do it over again, I would have done it over again, because this is so much more important than me or my life,”
Trump was also asked about the possibility of Tulsi Gabbard or Robert F. Kennedy Jr., two former Democrats that have become surrogates for the Trump campaign, serving in his cabinet during a potential second administration and claimed that he made no promises to them.
“It doesn’t mean anything. It means it could be, but I didn’t make deals with anybody,” Trump said about when asked about Kennedy serving as Health and Human Services secretary, as Kennedy’s former running mate Nicole Shanahan suggested. “It’s not appropriate to do it. It’s too early.”
Trump briefly talked about unity after an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, but now blames rhetoric from Democrats for political violence.
“They are a danger. They’re destroying our country,” Trump said in the interview which aired Sunday.
Trump again repeated his claims that he feels that “only consequential” presidents are in danger as he talked about the close call he had with a would-be shooter on his golf course in Florida last week.
“Well, I think we just have to do what you have to do,” he said, praising his Secret Service protection.
“I think that I will feel safe I think I’m going to feel safe.”
“I can’t be scared, because if you’re scared, you can’t do your job, so I just can’t be I have, thus far, had somebody protecting me,” he said.
(CHICAGO) —Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday unveiled her economic platform, her first major policy rollout since becoming the Democratic nominee.
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday held a press conference in Bedminster, New Jersey, where he said he’s “entitled” to insult his Democratic opponent because he doesn’t respect her and attacked her record on the economy.
Here’s how the news is developing:
Iran denies involvement in attempts to hack Trump, Biden campaigns
Iran is denying reports it was involved in attempts to hack the presidential campaigns of former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden, the latter of which while he was still in the race.
In a statement, the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations, said that reports of attempted hacking, which came from Google and Microsoft, are “unsubstantiated.”
“Such allegations are unsubstantiated and devoid of any standing. As we have previously announced, the Islamic Republic of Iran harbors neither the intention nor the motive to interfere with the U.S. presidential election,” the statement read. “Should the U.S. government genuinely believe in the validity of its claims, it should furnish us with the pertinent evidence—if any—to which we will respond accordingly.”
-ABC News’ Pierre Thomas
7:32 AM EDT Bernie Sanders to speak at DNC on ‘lowering health care costs’
Lowering health care costs will be a central theme at the Democratic National Convention this week, campaign and convention officials said on Monday, with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), confirmed as one notable program speaker set to focus upon the issue — specifically on “lowering Rx drug prices” and “taking on Big Pharma.”
Speakers throughout the week like Sanders, California Rep. Robert Garcia, Illinois Rep. Lauren Underwood and New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham will highlight the support of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for strengthening the Affordable Care Act, convention officials shared first with ABC News.
In a Friday speech setting out a string of economic proposals, Harris pledged to “lower the cost of insulin and prescription drugs for everyone.” She also said she’d “demand transparency from the middlemen who operate between Big Pharma and the insurance companies, who use opaque practices to raise your drug prices and profit off your need for medicine.”
-ABC News’ Isabella Murray
Kerry Washington, Tony Goldwyn and more to host DNC
Actors Kerry Washington, Tony Goldwyn, Mindy Kaling and commentator Ana Navarro will serve as hosts at the Democratic National Convention this week, convention officials confirmed to ABC News.
Each will host one night of the four-day convention, starting the programming with opening remarks and reappearing onstage throughout the night.
Goldwyn will host Monday night, Navarro on Tuesday and Kaling on Wednesday. Washington will host on Thursday, the night Vice President Kamala Harris formally accepts her nomination.
CNN first reported this news.
Harris and Walz debut new campaign buses and kick off tour ahead of DNC
Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz debuted their new campaign buses Sunday and kicked off a bus tour of southwestern Pennsylvania ahead of this week’s Democratic National Convention.
Upon their arrival on Air Force Two, a few hundred supporters greeted Harris, Walz and their spouses at a hangar where the new were buses parked.
Supporters told ABC News they were thrilled by Harris’ candidacy, with one saying she had not felt this excited about politics in years. Some said they had never volunteered for a campaign before signing up to work on Harris’.
“I was excited about Biden, but I am a million times more excited about Kamala,” Nicole Molinaro, a Pittsburgh-area mom, said. “I think that we need her leadership. We need her intelligence. We need her progressive, you know, stance. I think we need her experience. We need everything about Kamala.”
Another supporter, Edward Freel, said he was unsure about Harris at first, “but then, as I started listening better and following her, [I thought] this woman is going to be good for this country.”
Trump campaign releases counterprogramming schedule for DNC week
During the week of the DNC, Former President Donald Trump and Sen. JD Vance will be out on the campaign trail, holding events in battleground states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada.
Trump allies — including Sens. Ron Johnson and Rick Scott, and Rep. Byron Donalds — will travel to Chicago to host press conferences every day of the convention. The Trump team will also give a press conference on Thursday ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris accepting the Democratic party’s nomination.
“As they meet Americans where they are in battleground states across the country, President Trump and Senator Vance will remind voters that under their leadership, we can end inflation, protect our communities from violent criminals, secure the border, and Make America Great Again,” Trump Campaign Senior Advisors Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles said in a statement.
-ABC News’ Lalee Ibssa, Soo Rin Kim and Kelsey Walsh
Michelle Obama to speak at DNC this week
Former first lady Michelle Obama will speak at the DNC in Chicago this week, ABC News has confirmed with her office.
Her appearance, first reported by Essence Magazine, will be among a lineup of prominent Democratic leaders who are rallying in support of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Former President Barack Obama is also scheduled to speak at the DNC.
According to a source familiar with the planning, Michelle Obama will speak on Tuesday — the same day as the former president.
-ABC News’ Michelle Stoddart and Gabriella Abdul-Hakim
Former Democrat Rep. Tulsi Gabbard will help Trump prepare for presidential debate
Former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard will assist Trump in preparing for his first debate against Vice President Kamala Harris.
“[Trump] does not need traditional debate prep but will continue to meet with respected policy advisors and effective communicators like Tulsi Gabbard, who successfully dominated Kamala Harris on the debate stage,” Trump campaign National Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote in a statement to ABC News, confirming a development first reported by The New York Times.
Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii and a one-time Democratic presidential candidate during the 2020 election, gained brief momentum during her presidential run after challenging Harris on the debate stage on topics like criminal prosecutions.
Since leaving the Democratic Party, Gabbard has been gaining traction among Trump supporters, and more recently she has appeared on Fox and other conservative news outlets attacking Harris.
– ABC News’ Rachel Scott, Soo Rin Kim, Kelsey Walsh, and Lalee Ibssa
Election 2024 updates: ABC News Harris-Trump debate to be held in Philadelphia
The first debate between Vice President Harris and former President Trump will be held by ABC News at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.
The Sept. 10 debate will be moderated by ABC News anchors David Muir and Linsey Davis.
It will air live at 9:00 p.m. ET on the network and on its 24/7 streaming network ABC News Live, Disney+ and Hulu.
(WASHINGTON) — Former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., on Monday pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, telling reporters outside the courthouse the guilty plea was the “right thing to do.”
“This plea is not just an admission of guilt,” Santos told the media. “It’s an acknowledgment that I need to be held accountable like any other American that breaks the law.”
In court, Santos, wearing gray slacks and a black sports coat, told the judge he was “committed to making amends and learning from this experience.”
He is due to be sentenced on Feb. 7.
Santos pleaded guilty to claiming relatives had made contributions to his campaign when, in fact, they had not. Santos conceded he was trying to meet the fundraising threshold to qualify for financial help from the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Santos also stipulated that he committed other fraud, including charging donor credit cards without authorization and convincing donors to give money by falsely stating the money would be used for TV ads. He also stipulated he stole public money by applying for and receiving unemployment benefits during the pandemic to which he was not entitled.
Santos conceded in a statement to the court his actions “betrayed” his constituents and others.
In addition to potential prison time, Santos must pay restitution of nearly $374,000 and forfeiture of more than $200,000.
Santos faces a sentence of 75-87 months, including a mandatory minimum two-year sentence for aggravated identity theft.
Fighting back tears outside the courthouse after his plea, Santos said he was “flooded with deep regret” for his conduct. He vowed to accept responsibility for his actions while apologizing to his former constituents for allowing “ambition to cloud [his] judgment.”
“It is clear to me now that I allowed ambition to cloud my judgment, leading me to make decisions that were unethical,” Santos said. “Pleading guilty is a step I never imagined I would take, but it is a necessary one, because it is the right thing to do.”
Santos acknowledged he failed his constituents and said he hoped to be a part of “restoring the integrity” he diminished through his lies.
“It has been the proudest achievement of my life to represent you, and I believe I did so to the best of my abilities, but you also trusted me to represent you with honor and to uphold the values that are essential to our democracy, and in that regard, I failed you,” Santos said.
While Santos vowed to accept full responsibility for his conduct, his lawyers flagged in the final moments of his plea hearing this afternoon that the former congressman may not be able to pay over $200,000 in restitution.
Santos is required to pay the restitution 30 days before his sentencing on Feb. 7 and could face additional sanctions if he fails to pay in time.
“At this time, he does not have the money,” defense attorney Andrew Mancilla told federal judge Joanna Seybert.
Defense attorney Joseph Murray insisted that Santos would make his “best effort” to make the money over the next five months.
“We will see how it goes, but I see substantial problems if he can’t comply,” Seybert said before accepting Santos’ plea. “That sounds like we just have to hope.”
Santos, 36, was charged in May 2023 with 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making materially false statements to the House of Representatives following months of news reports about lies the Republican congressman told in his past.
In October 2023, the then-congressman faced 10 more charges in the Eastern District of New York, including wire fraud, making materially false statements to the Federal Election Commission and aggravated identity theft.
He had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges and his trial had been scheduled to start in September.
In July, a judge denied Santos’ motion to dismiss certain fraud charges, ruling he failed to meet the legal standards.
Two of Santos’ associates, his former campaign finance chief Nancy Marks and fundraiser Sam Miele, have already pleaded guilty to charges.
Santos survived an expulsion vote on Nov. 1, 2023, in the wake of the superseding indictment.
His support among Republicans wavered after the release of a damning report from the House Ethics Committee two weeks after surviving the expulsion vote.
“George Santos cannot be trusted,” declared the 56-page report. “At nearly every opportunity, he placed his desire for private gain above his duty to uphold the Constitution, federal law, and ethical principles.”
Santos allegedly reported fictitious loans to get wealthy donors to make contributions, according to the ethics report, used his connections to obtain yet more donations, including to make “purported ‘repayments’ of those fictitious loans,” and diverted campaign money for his own use.
Santos’ expenses ranged from spending $2,280 in Atlantic City, where he allegedly liked to play roulette with his husband; $2,900 spent on Botox; approximately $10,000 spent at high-end Ferragamo and Hermes stores; and about $3,330 at a rental property, according to the report.
Exactly one month after surviving the first expulsion vote, Santos became just the sixth member of Congress to ever be expelled on Dec. 1, 2023.
He had, until that point, represented New York’s 3rd Congressional District, which includes parts of Queens and Nassau counties, since January 2020.
Santos ended a long-shot comeback bid to represent New York’s 1st Congressional District in April.
Following court this afternoon, United States Attorney Breon Peace described Santos’ crimes as a “fraud of unprecedented proportions.”
“Today, … or what may seem like the first time since he started his campaign for Congress, Mr. Santos told the truth about his criminal escapes,” Peace said about today’s plea.
-ABC News’ Leah Sarnoff contributed to this story.
