FBI arrests aged top aide to N.Y. Gov. Kathy Hochul
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A aged top aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul was arrested Tuesday on federal charges of performing as a undercover agent of the Chinese language authorities, authorities acknowledged.
Linda Solar, 41, is accused of the hiss of her excessive-ranking positions in hiss authorities to wait on the pursuits of the Chinese language authorities and the Chinese language Communist Occasion in commerce for millions of bucks. Her husband, Chris Hu, 40, was moreover arrested within the alleged procedure.
Solar was charged with violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Brokers Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling and money laundering. Hu was charged with money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to commit monetary institution fraud and misuse of contrivance of identification.
Each and each pleaded no longer responsible Tuesday afternoon. Solar was arena to be launched on a $1.5 million bond, her husband on a $500,000 bond.
“We’re upset by the submitting of those charges, which will be inflammatory and appear to be the made of an overly aggressive prosecution,” Solar’s lawyers, Jarrod Schaeffer and Kenneth Abell, acknowledged in a statement after the hearing. “We’re moreover terrified by facets of the authorities’s investigation. As we acknowledged this day in courtroom, our client is desirous to hiss her staunch to a rapidly trial and to defend in opposition to these accusations within the ethical forum — a courtroom of law.”
The arrests approach six weeks after FBI agents searched the couple’s $3.5 million home in a gated community in Manhasset on Long Island.
Solar worked in hiss authorities for roughly 15 years, keeping positions within the administration of then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo earlier than changing into Hochul’s deputy chief of workers, in accordance along with her LinkedIn profile.
Avi Tiny, a spokesman for Hochul, acknowledged Solar was employed greater than a decade within the past and fired in March 2023 after “evidence of misconduct” was chanced on. Tiny acknowledged Hochul’s workers right away reported her actions to law enforcement and fill assisted the authorities working the case.
In step with the 64-net page indictment, Solar blocked Taiwanese authorities representatives from having earn admission to to excessive-ranking New York hiss officers and changed the messaging of hiss officers on problems with importance to the Chinese language authorities — all at the inquire of of Chinese language officers. Solar moreover helped Chinese language authorities officers shuttle to the U.S. and meet with New York officers by offering unauthorized invitation letters from excessive-stage hiss officers, in accordance with the indictment.
“Solar’s unauthorized invitation letters for the PRC authorities delegation constituted wrong statements made in reference to immigration paperwork and caused the international electorate into unlawfully coming into the US,” Brooklyn federal prosecutors acknowledged in a statement.
“Solar by no contrivance registered as a international agent with the Attorney Normal, and genuinely actively concealed that she took actions at the expose, inquire of, or direction of PRC authorities and the CCP representatives.”
In return, Solar received millions of bucks in transactions for the China-primarily based mostly industry activities of her husband, tickets to events, employment for her cousin in China and Nanjing-model salted geese that had been though-provoking by a Chinese language authorities legitimate’s personal chef and delivered to the build of dwelling of Solar’s of us, in accordance with prosecutors.
The couple historical the money to aquire their home on Long Island, as smartly as a $2 million home in Honolulu and luxury vehicles, including a 2024 Ferrari, prosecutors acknowledged.
Liu Pengyu, the spokesman for the Chinese language embassy in Washington, acknowledged U.S. authorities fill introduced same cases within the past simplest to gaze them disintegrate.
“I’m no longer responsive to the categorical minute print. But in recent years, the U.S. authorities and media fill repeatedly hyped up the so-known as ‘Chinese language agents’ narratives, many of which fill later been proven counterfeit,” he acknowledged. “China requires its electorate in a single more nation to conform with the prison pointers and regulations of the host nation, and we firmly oppose the groundlessly slandering and smearing targeting China.”
Fixed along with her authorities bio, Solar was appointed deputy chief of workers to Hochul, a Democrat, in September 2021. At the time, she was the absolute most sensible-appointed Asian American within the administration.
After leaving Hochul’s situation of enterprise, she served temporarily as a deputy secretary within the hiss Labor Division.
Jonathan Dienst is chief justice contributor for NBC Files and chief investigative reporter for WNBC-TV in New York.
