A former top aide to Govs. Andrew Cuomo and Kathy Hochul was China\u2019s \u201cwoman in New York state government,\u201d prosecutors said this week during the closing arguments in her criminal trial in Brooklyn federal court.<\/p>\n
\u201cLinda Sun betrayed the state of New York to enrich herself,\u201d Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Solomon told jurors Tuesday. \u201cShe did the bidding of the Chinese government so that she and her husband, Chris Hu, could get rich.\u201d<\/p>\n
The case against Sun carries international political implications that an unregistered foreign agent worked within the offices of two Democratic governors to advance policy favorable to the Chinese government. She faces charges<\/a> of being an unregistered foreign agent for China, as well as wire fraud, visa fraud and money laundering. Hu faces charges of helping launder bribes through his various businesses and bank accounts. Both have pleaded not guilty.<\/p>\n The jury is expected to begin deliberating on Thursday.<\/p>\n Sun\u2019s defense attorneys said the prosecution\u2019s case was no more than a \u201chodgepodge of accusations.\u201d<\/p>\n In his closing arguments, attorney Kenneth Abell compared the government\u2019s case to a \u201cmovie plot\u201d that \u201cdoesn\u2019t hold together.\u201d While he acknowledged Sun may have made some mistakes, \u201cshe did not commit a crime.\u201d<\/p>\n Prosecutors say Sun performed tasks in service of the Chinese government and the ruling Communist Party. They argue Sun \u201csingle-handedly\u201d blocked a meeting between Cuomo and the president of Taiwan, secretly added a Chinese official to a private government conference call, and forged Hochul\u2019s signature as part of a visa application for a visiting Chinese delegation.<\/p>\n