Ex-aide to New York governor pleads not guilty to new pandemic fraud charge

NEW YORK (AP) — A former aide to two New York governors already facing charges of acting as an illicit agent of China pleaded not guilty on Monday to additional charges that she improperly profited from the state’s purchase of face masks and other key medical supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Linda Sun, 41, and her husband, Chris Hu, 40, — who is also charged — entered not guilty pleas to charges of wire fraud, bribery and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Hu also faces tax evasion charges.

The two remain free on bond and are due back in court Aug. 25 ahead of an expected November trial.

Sun’s lawyer Jarrod Schaeffer declined to comment following Monday’s proceedings but has previously dismissed the new charges as “feverish accusations unmoored from the facts.” Hu’s lawyers didn’t immediately respond Monday but have also similarly denied the charges.

Prosecutors say the couple collected millions of dollars in kickbacks by exploiting Sun’s role in helping New York procure personal protective equipment, or PPE, during the pandemic in 2020.

They say Sun, a naturalized U.S. citizen, used connections in her native China to secure PPE for the state, though she didn’t disclose her family’s ties to two vendors that received more than $44 million, prosecutors say.

Sun previously pleaded not guilty to charges she used her position in state government to advance Chinese government priorities in exchange for financial rewards, including assistance with Hu’s business ventures in China.

The lucrative benefits helped the Long Island couple live a lavish lifestyle with multimillion-dollar properties and luxury cars, prosecutors have said.

Sun worked for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his successor, Gov. Kathy Hochul, until she was fired in 2023.