Linda Sun landed in Albany about 15 years ago as a young political staffer and worked her way into the executive chamber — where the feds alleged she worked to advance Chinese interests in New York’s government.
Political insiders were shocked by the arrests Tuesday of Sun and her husband Christopher Hu, on charges of violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling and money laundering conspiracy, to which they have pleaded not guilty.
“There’s nobody who worked in or around politics in the Asian American community who knew Linda Sun who isn’t absolutely floored by this,” one source familiar with Sun told the Post.
“I’ve worked with Linda Sun for many years and have only known her to be diligent, professional, and conscientious, and she is absolutely innocent until proven otherwise,” state Sen. John Liu (D-Queens) wrote in a statement defending Sun after her arrest.
According to an indictment unsealed in Brooklyn federal court, Sun and her husband, Chris Hu, were paid millions of dollars in kickbacks in exchange for acting as foreign agents for China — and the couple allegedly laundered their corrupt gains, including on a gaudy $4 million mansion in Manhasset.
The Queens operative had a modest upbringing, so her sudden move to a fancy Long Island home raised eyebrows even before it was raided by the FBI in July.
“Linda doesn’t come from money at all,” the source familiar with Sun said.
Several were also confused on how a government staffer and her husband who owns a liquor store and some other non-descript businesses were able to buy the nearly expensive home, which was purchased without a mortgage, according to property records.
“It seems crazy to me,” one source said.
Sun came to the state capitol in 2009 as a close ally and chief of staff to then-Assemblywoman Grace Meng.
“They got to Albany and didn’t have anybody except each other,” a source said of Sun and Meng.
As Meng’s star rose amongst New York Democrats, so did Sun’s.
Several people told The Post they were always impressed with Sun’s work ethic in the legislature and through her posts in the administrations of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and then Gov. Kathy Hochul.
One source said Meng, who is now a US congresswoman, recommended Sun for her job in the Cuomo admin as a rep handling Asian American affairs in Queens. A rep for Meng said in a statement Tuesday: “We don’t know anything about the charges other than what is being reported.”
After joining the administration, Sun continued working in Asian American affairs but eventually came to wear other hats as well, shifting to the Empire State Development office, where she handled trade missions with a portfolio focusing on Asian countries including China.
She also worked for the Department of Financial Services in intergovernmental affairs.
According to the indictment, Sun sat for a voluntary interview with the FBI in July 2020. It’s unclear what the exact purpose of that interview was, but the indictment notes that the agents told her about the requirements of the Foreign Agents Registration Act and discussed a think tank’s report on Chinese influence operations.
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Sun was brought on as a deputy chief of staff to the executive chamber in 2021 following Cuomo’s resignation — over a year after that FBI interview.
She was ultimately fired in March 2023, after the Hochul administration said it uncovered evidence of misconduct, which it reported to law enforcement.
After being canned from the Department of Labor, Sun managed a campaign by Austin Cheng to try and unseat then-Rep. George Santos. Cheng dropped out after Rep. Tom Suozzi announced his bid to retake his old seat.
“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,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Cuomo’s spokesman Rich Azzopardi, meanwhile, pointed fingers at Hochul.
“While Ms Sun was promoted to Deputy Chief of Staff in the subsequent administration, during our time she worked in a handful of agencies and was one of many community liaisons who had little to no interaction with the governor,” he said.
