Who is Linda Sun, and is she really a secret agent for the Chinese government?

A former aide to New York governor, Kathy Hochul, and former governor, Andrew Cuomo, has been arrested by the FBI due to her allegedly being an undercover agent working for the Chinese government.

According to an article from CNN, the woman, whose name is Linda Sun, has been indicted along with her husband, Chris Hu. So what, if anything, do we know about Linda Sun and the allegations levied against her?

Who is Linda Sun?

Linda Sun is a 41-year-old Ivy League graduate and as already mentioned, she worked for Democratic Governors over a period of 14 years. While we don’t know a great deal about her personal life, we do know about her employment history, so let’s dive into that first.

Sun was hired as chief of staff in Rep. Grace Meng’s office before being hired as director of Asian American affairs and Queens representative by Cuomo in 2012. Her various roles in high up government positions continued until 2023, becoming the director of external affairs for the Empire State Development corporation before being hired as the chief diversity officer in 2018. When Hochul took over as state governor, Sun continued to work for her as deputy chief of staff.

Her final position was that of deputy commissioner for strategic business, although a few months into her post, her employment came to an end as the governor’s office found “evidence of misconduct,” although the details regarding the “misconduct” were not released at the time.

The allegations against Linda Sun

Prosecutors are accusing Sun of a number of acts that were done with the intention of aiding the People’s Republic of China, including blocking Taiwanese diplomats from contacting the state government as well as sharing information with Beijing, reports BBC News. She also sent unauthorized letters of invitation to PRC representatives which helped them obtain visas for the U.S., as well as used her position to ensure that Cuomo praised China for its help with Covid-19.

Sun and her husband also reportedly received millions of dollars in kickbacks from the Chinese government which they used to purchase a house in New York, a condominium in Honolulu, and even some luxury sports cars. Chris Hu is also facing charges for laundering the money paid to them by the Chinese government among other charges that include conspiracy and misusing means of identification.

A spokesperson for Cuomo has done what they can to distance the former governor from Sun, claiming she “had little to no interaction with the governor.” Meanwhile Hochul said she was “furious,” “outraged,” and “shocked,” according to CBS New York.

The pair were being held on bond, with Sun’s set at $1.5 million and Hu’s being $500,000, with both having plead not guilty. One of Sun’s attorney’s, Jarrod Schaeffer, told CNN that the charges “are inflammatory and appear to be the product of an overly aggressive prosecution.”

Of course, we’ll have to wait and see what else the prosecution comes forward with and what the defense has to say. As of now, the next status conference where the progress of the case will be discussed is scheduled for Sept. 25.