Resurfaced video shows Hochul's 'Chinese undercover agent' aide Linda Sun demanding 'equity' in US government

A former aide of New York governor Kathy Hochul who has been accused of being an agent for Beijing previously served as the DEI boss for the state.

Linda Sun, 41, was arrested at her Long Island mansion on Tuesday and is accused of enriching herself and her family by acting as an undisclosed agent of the Chinese Communist Party. She was released the same day on a $1.5 million bond after pleading not guilty.

Her husband was released on a $500,000 bond.  

Sun worked in the state's government for almost 15 years, holding several posts in the Andrew Cuomo administration, including as chief diversity officer in 2018, before she served for Hochul.

In 2021, years before her arrest, Sun used her role as Hochul's deputy chief of staff as she spoke about the importance of diversity and inclusion efforts in the governor's office.

'When people say diversity and inclusion, I think everybody agrees - or most people generally agree - that it's a good thing... I think right now we also need to bring in the word equity,' Sun said on a panel of Asian women in government leadership.

Linda Sun, a former aide of New York governor Kathy Hochul, who has been accused of being an agent for Beijing, previously served as the DEI boss for the state

'Equity is when we make sure that all the people who are at the table have equal access to make sure that their ideas and their thoughts are heard, and unfortunately... we don't have that much leadership or representation of Asian Americans in the corporate world [or] the government field.'

Sun then expanded on her resume, claiming she served as New York state's deputy chief diversity officer and then as the chief diversity officer for the Department of Financial Services.

Sun spoke of creating a program during her time at the governor's office called 'Adapt,' which was meant to ensure that every state agency hires someone to promote Equity and Inclusion 

'That means that when you are hiring, if there's ten candidates, there's somebody who says, "well, where is the diverse candidate?"' Sun explained.

'You can't come to me and say, "oh, all ten candidates are from the same background, they're all the same ethnicity."

'There has to be ways that you're bringing diverse candidates to the table. If there's ten candidates, there should be at least five people in that pool who also happen to be diverse candidates.'

Sun is seen at a 2019 protest against the Taiwanese president's visit in NYC, per prosecutors

The couple’s $3.5 five-bedroom mansion was searched in July by federal officials

There was no sign of the Ferrari prosecutors say Sun purchased at the home on Tuesday 

Sun is charged with blocking representatives of the Taiwanese government from having access to high-level New York State officers and changing messaging on issues that involved the CCP.

Prosecutors claim she used the proceeds of her illegal work to buy the Manhasset home as well as a $2.1 million condo in Hawaii and luxury vehicles including a 2024 Ferrari.

Sun and her husband are also charged with laundering the proceeds of their illegal activities. Hu is also charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and misuse of means of identification. 

A 63-page indictment alleges that Sun 'repeatedly violated internal rules and protocols' of the NY governor's office to 'provide improper benefits' to China and the Communist Party, according to the Department of Justice.

US attorney Breon Peace said: 'As alleged, while appearing to serve the people of New York as Deputy Chief of Staff within the New York State Executive Chamber, the defendant and her husband actually worked to further the interests of the Chinese government and the CCP.

Sun is seen above being honored at a People's Republic of China consulate event in an image included in the Department of Justice's indictment 

Sun is seen posing with All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese (ACFROC) members in more evidence presented by the US government

'The illicit scheme enriched the defendant’s family to the tune of millions of dollars. Our Office will act decisively to prosecute those who serve as undisclosed agents of a foreign government.'

Sun allegedly received benefits including help for Hu’s China-based business activities and undisclosed tickets to performances by visiting Chinese orchestra and ballet groups, the indictment says.

A Chinese government official’s personal chef prepared 'Nanjing-style salted ducks' that were delivered to Sun’s parents’ home, it adds.

The couple purchased the home in a gated community called Stone Hill in 2021. Earlier this year, they placed the home in a trust, records show.

Sun worked in state government for almost 15 years, first in 2009 as the chief of staff for New York State Assembly member Grace Meng, who is now a member of congress.

Sun then held posts in the administration of former Governor Andrew Cuomo starting in 2012, including as Global New York Trade Manager, Asian Outreach Director for the Office of the Governor and Queens Regional Representative.

In 2018 the Cuomo administration named Sun as chief diversity officer.

In September 2021 she was appointed as the deputy chief of staff for Hochul, according to her LinkedIn profile. She remained on the role for about 15 months.

In September 2021, Sun was appointed as the deputy chief of staff for governor Hochul

Sun held posts in the administration of former Governor Andrew Cuomo including as Global New York Trade Manager, Asian Outreach Director for the Office of the Governor and Queens Regional Representative

In November of 2022 she moved to a job at the New York Department of Labor, where she served as deputy commissioner for strategic business development, but she departed that job just months later in March of 2023, the profile said.

A person familiar with the circumstances of her departure told the Associated Press she was fired after evidence of misconduct was discovered.

The matter was forwarded to law enforcement at the time, according to the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss personnel matters. The person declined to detail the nature of the alleged misconduct.

After leaving state government, Sun went to work as campaign manager for Democrat Austin Cheng in an unsuccessful run for Congress on Long Island.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Hochul’s office said the administration fired Sun after 'discovering evidence of misconduct.'

'This individual was hired by the Executive Chamber more than a decade ago. 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 statement reads.