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Former NY aide, accused of being a Chinese agent, asks judge to toss her case
By
Samantha Max
Published Nov 5, 2024
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Consulate General to the People's Republic of China in New York
By
Samantha Max
Published Nov 5, 2024
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A former aide in the New York governor’s office calls allegations that she used her influence to benefit the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party a “weak fiction” in a new court filing, which asks a judge to throw out the case.
Linda Sun was indicted earlier this year on a slew of federal charges, including visa fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Prosecutors say Sun used her power as a state official to block meetings between the governor’s office and Taiwanese officials, change government messaging to align with Chinese policy stances, and help Chinese officials to unlawfully obtain visas, among other allegations. They say Chinese officials rewarded Sun by boosting her husband’s seafood business, giving her cousin a job, gifting her tickets to events and delivering Nanjing-style salted ducks to her parents’ home.
Sun and Hu both pleaded not guilty in September. Now, Sun’s attorney says the charges aren't backed by evidence.
In a motion to dismiss the case filed Monday, defense attorney Jarrod Schaeffer argues prosecutors jumbled dates and events “to concoct a narrative” that would hide legal holes in the indictment.
“In this case, the government went fishing for corruption but, finding none, settled for branding Ms. Sun as disloyal,” the motion states. “That was and is wrong.”
A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of New York, which is prosecuting the case, declined to comment on the new court filing. A federal judge will decide in the coming weeks whether any of the charges should be dropped. While it’s common for defense attorneys to file such motions to dismiss, judges often deny them and let cases continue to move forward in the courts.
Sun was charged just weeks before federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York accused New York City Mayor Eric Adams of trading his political sway for bribes from Turkish nationals. Adams has denied the allegations, and his attorneys have already asked a judge to dismiss at least one of the charges against him.
In Sun’s case, her lawyer argues prosecutors failed to establish she violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act, a federal law that regulates lobbying and propaganda for foreign governments. Schaeffer filing says prosecutors didn’t provide sufficient evidence that Chinese officials requested her help, or that she acted to benefit their interests ahead of New Yorkers’.
In the filing, Schaeffer says prosecuting her actions could jeopardize anyone who agrees to help a foreign official, including someone who donates food and clothing to earthquake victims in another country. He also argues prosecutors didn’t show that Sun was aware of the federal law, which requires agents of foreign officials to publicly disclose their relationships.
While most of the filing focuses on the two charges related to the Foreign Agents Registration Act, Sun’s lawyer also asks a judge to dismiss the other charges against her, including visa fraud. Once again, Schaeffer focuses on intent and argues prosecutors haven’t demonstrated that she knowingly broke the law.
He also argues that a money laundering conspiracy charge should be dropped because of an “utter lack” of allegations connecting Sun to a laundering scheme.
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Politics
Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
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