Caption Courtroom Sketch Eric Adams

Eric Adams makes history as first Mayor to be indicted while governing New York City

 

 New York Times

Mayor Eric Adams has been indicted on federal criminal charges, according to people with knowledge of the matter, and will be the first mayor in modern New York City history to be charged while in office.

The indictment is sealed, and it was unclear what charge or charges Mr. Adams, a Democrat, will face or when he will surrender to the authorities. Federal prosecutors were expected to announce the details of the indictment on Thursday.

The mayor, in a videotaped speech posted online late Wednesday, adopted a combative tone, saying any charges against him would be “entirely false” and “based on lies.” He said he had been targeted by the federal authorities because he had “stood my ground” for New Yorkers.

Mr. Adams, 64, also made it clear he had no intention of resigning, which he is not required to do under the City Charter. He said he would request an “immediate” trial and would “fight these injustices with every ounce of my strength, and my spirit.”

The indictment comes a little less than a year after federal agents searched the home of Mr. Adams’s chief fund-raiser and seized the mayor’s electronic devices as he left a public event in Manhattan.

The mayor and his aides have said he was cooperating with the authorities, and Mr. Adams has continued to insist that he has done nothing wrong.

Mr. Adams, a retired police captain, was elected New York’s 110th mayor in 2021 after a campaign built on a pledge to reduce crime, bring professionalism to City Hall and tap his personal brand of “swagger.”

But he staffed top positions with friends and loyalists, and his inner circle became engulfed by federal investigations. This month, federal agents seized phones from numerous top city officials, including a top aide to Mr. Adams, the schools chancellor and the police commissioner. The commissioner, Edward A. Caban, and the schools chancellor, David C. Banks, later resigned.

Mr. Adams, the second Black person to lead the nation’s largest city, was already facing a competitive primary in his run for re-election next year, and the indictment was likely to prompt more challengers to enter the race.

Here’s what else to know:

• The indictment raised immediate questions about Mr. Adams’s ability to serve as mayor, adding to the growing pressure for him to step down. Gov. Kathy Hochul has the power to remove him from office.

• Mr. Adams made it clear in his statement that he had no immediate plans to resign. If he changes his mind, Jumaane Williams, the city’s public advocate, will become the city’s acting mayor.

• Several federal corruption investigations have reached top people around Mr. Adams, with some of the highest-ranking officials in his administration coming under scrutiny. Read more about the investigations here. Here is a timeline of the key moments leading up to the indictment.

• The swarm of federal inquiries in the lead-up to the indictment of Mr. Adams plunged his administration into a free fall, further diminishing his political stature. It raised doubts about his re-election chances next year and his ability to engage with other political leaders. Read more about the challenges in City Hall here.

At around 11:30 p.m., Frank Carone, the former City Hall chief of staff, exited Gracie Mansion. In a grey suit, Carone described the mayor as “strong” and said he would not respond to calls to resign. “Like anybody else, he is innocent until proven guilty and he deserves his day in court,” Carone said. In response to questions about whether Adams would or should be replaced, he spoke sternly. “There is one mayor of New York City, and that is Eric Adams.” 

 

 

No bike lane bliss for Blissville

NY Post 

Businesses in one of the last-standing industrial corners of Long Island City say they can only take so much gentrification — and that a planned new bike lane has put them over the edge.

Local industries argue that the cyclist carve-out in the trendy Queens neighborhood will be dangerous for their truck drivers — not to mention the bikers.

“Not every street is safe for a bike lane. You wouldn’t put a bike lane down the middle of the LIE. It’s just not safe. And this is similar,” argued Matthew Dienstag, co-owner of the local LeNoble Lumber.

 But the city — which touts on its transportation Web site that nearly 1 million New Yorkers regularly ride bikes — is plowing ahead with plans to connect the Pulaski and Kosciuszko bridges for bikers.

The connection will come by way of Borden, Starr and Review avenues — a dangerous sector of Blissville infamous for its big-truck congestion.

“It’s like, ‘This is what we’re doing, we don’t give a s–t.’ Excuse my French,” griped Michael Diamond of J&S Supply Corp, a 75-year-old insulation and roofing distributor company, to The Post, referring to the city’s stance.

J&S Supply is one of the dozens of warehouse businesses, as well as a city Sanitation Department waste management facility, that contribute to the heavy stream of truck and forklift traffic traveling in and out of the corridor.

Massive box trucks already swerve across both lanes of traffic to enter and exit their warehouses, a tricky maneuver made even more difficult by the overcrowded streets’ chronic double-parking problem.

Local civic associations and the community board requested the bike lane as a solution to the safety issues.

With space allotted for parking on both sides of the road, just about 22 feet would be left for moving traffic — a significant slice that business owners say they cannot give up.

“There probably will be more truck accidents than there are now,’’ Dienstag argued. “When you have a tractor-trailer pulling into any one of these buildings there to put to back in or to pull out, they’re almost hitting those cars afterwards.”

The business owners said cyclists would be in danger, too.

In a span of one hour Friday morning, The Post observed four cyclists pedal down Review Avenue, including one who opted for the sidewalk path rather than the busy street.

“There’s a lot of trucks, so it’s better this way. No one’s around,” said Richard Derba of Maspeth, Queens, who cycles to Greenpoint along the Review Avenue sidewalk twice a week.

When asked if the incoming bike lane would be beneficial, Derba said it wouldn’t make a difference to him because the vehicular traffic would still be too heavy for his comfort.

The DOT argument to justify inducement of bike lanes would be a little more credible if their data for cycling wasn't two years old. But like the man said, they don't give a shit.

 

Glendale single men's shelter update

 

Looks like the men's homeless shelter on Cooper Ave. is growing corn. 

It's also growing outside lodging. 

 This is also the first time I ever seen the drive thru gate open. 

 

 

Litmus Test Garden

 

NY Post

They’re planting hate.

A community garden in Ridgewood, Queens, has morphed into a group of pro-Palestinian green thumbs who grow “Poppies for Palestine” and host “Free Palestine” poster making events.

Sara Schraeter-Mowers told The Post she can’t remember the last time she felt welcome in her own neighborhood, where she’s lived for 18 years.

She blamed the Sunset Community Garden, in part, for “creating an environment” in Ridgewood “that’s very hostile towards me and my family.”

Jewish Ridgewood residents are now afraid to go dig in the dirt at the garden, said Schraeter-Mowers, a teacher whose cousin was killed at the Nova Festival massacre on Oct. 7.

Schraeter-Mowers said she was profoundly offended by a July 28 post to the garden’s Instagram page, showing a painting that had been created during the “Free Palestine” arts and crafts event. 

 “They’re hosting events specifically designed to promote hatred toward Jewish people,” Schraeter-Mowers said.

“They don’t care that they’re alienating certain members of the community, even while putting on the mask of being inclusive.”

“I’d be safer in my home country [of Israel] than I am here,” Schraeter-Mowers added.

“I basically feel like we’re not allowed to be part of the community. I understand they’re trying to ensure people aren’t being discriminated against, but in doing so, they’re discriminating against an entire population in your community.”

 Steph Herold’s Instagram post accused the garden’s heads of pushing “out every Jew in the neighborhood who doesn’t conform to your narrow view of acceptable political opinion on Israel.”

In June, the group’s “community agreements” were first posted to the social media platform, and later updated in August.

They’re essentially 10 separate, brevity-challenged pledges all prospective members must make prior to joining the community garden.

One agreement required members to express “solidarity with the oppressed and marginalized people in our own neighborhood and across the globe, especially Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Hawaii,” and Puerto Rico, “as well as with the land and water protectors globally. Active genocides, ecocide, the rise in climate disaster and refugees, victims of class warfare, and others are a direct cause for action in our collective liberation against human rights and environmental justice violations.”

Queens gets the play money

 NY Post

Pass go — and hop on the 7 train?

The classic board game Monopoly is rolling out a new “Queens Edition” with the borough’s iconic landmarks replacing standard Atlantic-city-inspired spaces such as “Boardwalk” and “Park Place.”

Players will be able to buy, sell, and trade famous businesses, non-profits and neighborhoods in the “World’s Borough” when the game hits the shelves Oct. 5, according to Top Trumps USA, which teamed up with Hasbro on the new iteration.

And just like real life, folks from the outer borough can be over-taxed and tossed in jail.

Earlier this year, the game-makers asked Queens residents to vote on which sites they want featured — but the firms haven’t said yet which ones made the cut.

Rockaway Beach, Queens Center Mall and the 7 train are expected to light up the board.

Jay Varma: Scamdemic Wizard

"Dr." Jay Varma had orgies and dance raves on molly while advising Mayor de Blasio to shut the whole city down causing millions of New Yorkers to lose their jobs and then crafting the vaccine mandates that led to thousands of New Yorkers losing their jobs. And he did it for the power and the glory and from this video, for the p--sy. This lowlife belongs in prison but for now we'll take him getting humiliated while dining al fresco

Sleazy Eddie steps off

NY Post 

 NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban stepped down Thursday under pressure from City Hall in the aftermath of raids by federal agents that targeted a slew of police officials and close aides to Mayor Eric Adams.

Caban — whose electronic devices were seized by federal agents last week in what sources described as a sweeping corruption probe involving potential influence peddling — submitted a letter of resignation that Adams said he accepted.

After Caban’s resignation takes effect Friday, the commish job will be filled by former FBI official Tom Donlon on an interim basis, Adams said.

“The news around recent developments has created a distraction for our department, and I am unwilling to let my attention be on anything other than our important work, or the safety of the men and women of the NYPD,” Caban said in an internal email sent to members of service Thursday morning, and obtained by The Post.

23

Queens is burning and more unaffordable

  

QNS

A 72-year-old man was killed after a fire engulfed his illegal basement apartment in South Richmond Hill on Thursday afternoon.

The FDNY received a call just after 5 p.m. of a house fire at 94-14 132nd St. Firefighters confirmed the blaze broke out in the basement. The FDNY dispatched 12 units and 60 firefighters and EMS personnel to the scene. Paramedics rescued the 72-year-old victim, and EMS rushed him to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition. He succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead a short while later.

Two other residents were injured, and one firefighter suffered a minor injury. They were treated at the scene. The fire was brought under control at 5:44 p.m. 

QNS

New York City has launched a housing lottery for 182 units in The Monarch, a 24-story mixed-use development at 92-29 Guy R Brewer Blvd. in Jamaica that opened last July.

The building has 605 total residences, with 30 available in the housing lottery for those earning 80% of the area median income and another 152 for those earning 130% of the area median income.

Of the 30 units set aside for those earning 80% of the area median income, 25 are one-bedroom, with a monthly rent of $1,596. Up to three people can reside in each unit, as long as their combined annual income ranges from $58,046.-$111,840. The other five units are two-bedroom, with a monthly rent of $1,904. These units are meant for up to five people, who earn $69,669-$134,160 annually.

For the 152 units set aside for those earning 130% of the area median income, 125 of them are one-bedroom units, which cost $3,140 a month. They are meant for up to three residents, who combine to bring in $107,658-$181,740. The 27 remaining units are two-bedroom, with a monthly rent of $3,753. Up to five people can live in these units, as long as they combine to earn $128,675-$218,010 annually.

Amenities for residents of The Monarch include washers, dryers and dishwashers in the units, high-end kitchen appliances, countertops and finishes, air-conditioning, energy-efficient appliances, smart controls for heating and cooling, charging outlets with USB ports, hardwood floors, cable or satellite TV and high-speed internet.

QNS

The average rental price for housing units across Queens went up 4.07% year-over-year in August 2024, according to a report by the real estate firm M.N.S. Real Estate.

Queens had its overall rental price jump from $2,812 in August 2023 to $2,926 in August 2024. Studios, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom units each experienced price hikes over this period of time. While the year-over-year changes were not as extreme as last month, the trends were similar.

Studios again had the largest percentage increase, going up 5.92%, from $2,240 in 2023 to $2,372 in 2024. Rego Park retained its title of having the most significant increase in studio rent year-over-year among the 11 Queens neighborhoods included in the study. The cost there rose from $2,138 last year to $2,714 this year.

One-bedroom units had a 3.73% rise in rent, from $2,737 in August 2023 to $2,839 in August 2024. Once again, Rego Park had the biggest boost among the Queens neighborhoods, with the rent of one-bedroom units there going up from $2,646 last year to $2,889 this year

Two-bedroom units again had the largest increase in price, going up 4.41%, from $3,415 in August 2023 to $3,566 in August 2024. Sunnyside had the biggest change, up from $2,920 last year to $3,316 this year.

The most expensive units continue to be found in Long Island City. The average rent in August there was $3,464 for studios, $4,223 for one-bedroom units and $5,975 for two-bedroom units.

Sacrificial Hams

 

 NY Post

Animal sacrifices are surging in Queens, with chickens, pigs and rats being tortured, mutilated or killed in “twisted” religious rituals in parkland surrounding Jamaica Bay, The Post has learned. 

In a little over a month, at least nine wounded animals or carcasses have been discovered in the federally-managed Spring Creek Park in Howard Beach and the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Broad Channel — including five live pigs with partially severed ears.

Creatures recovered from the revolting scene also include a near-dead baby rat tied up in a bag with chicken bones; a freshly-decapitated chicken head; a live hen in distress; and a dead dog with its neck snapped. 

“It’s continually getting worse. The animal sacrifices are happening more repeatedly, more times a week,” Sloane Quealy, co-founder and president of Zion’s Mission Animal Rescue, told The Post.

“The sacrificers know it’s open season.”

 One of the distressed pigs was found emaciated in a food-filled crate in July, with a deep gash running down its face and its body covered in oils and spices, said Kristen Latuga, who has taken in all five of the ailing swine at her Long Island animal sanctuary, Brucie’s Angels.

Several rescuers and a local religious leader suggested the torture was linked to a sect of Hindu devotees who worship the goddess Kali and have practiced animal sacrifice in the area surrounding Jamaica Bay for decades.

“It’s a misconstruing of what the scriptures say about conquering the animalistic values,” said Acharya Arun Gossai, who runs the Bhuvaneshwar Mandir temple in Ozone Park.

“They’ve twisted it and they’ve sacrificed an actual animal rather than sacrificing the animalistic qualities of man.” 

Jamaica Bay has been a popular religious site among members of the Hindu Guyanese and Indo-Caribbean diaspora living in nearby neighborhoods, including Richmond Hill and Ozone Park. 

Along the waterway, which has been nicknamed the “Ganges” by some, after the sacred body of water in India, people regularly gather to give offerings, typically flowers and fruits, and leave statues of deities as well as prayer flags. 

This week, The Post observed Quealy and another animal rescuer, Kim Fraser, track down a trio of piglets that had their ears and tails cut off — roughly 100 feet away from a pair of statuettes of Hindu deities resting atop a mound of turf alongside a trio of flags.

Prayer flags were spotted nearby bundled up in the brush.

Followers of other religions whose rituals involve animal sacrifice, such as Santeria and voodoo, also have been known to use beaches and parks surrounding Jamaica Bay to carry out bloody rites. 

Walls are closing in and tumbling down in the Adams administration

  

THE CITY

 

Federal authorities have raided the homes of some of the highest-ranking members of Mayor Eric Adams’ administration, including two deputy mayors and the schools chancellor, and seized the electronic devices of New York City’s police commissioner, sources familiar with the situation told THE CITY.

This extraordinary effort in the last two days to obtain evidence from some of the highest-ranking members of Adams’ team — all of whom have longtime and close ties to the mayor — follows other federal raids and seizures that have swept up the mayor and other top aides in what appears to be a broadening investigation of City Hall.

On Wednesday agents showed up around 5 a.m. at the Hamilton Heights townhouse of Sheena Wright, who also happens to be the fiancé of Chancellor Banks. The chancellor was seen by THE CITY entering and leaving the townhouse twice on Thursday. Asked about the raid, David Banks declined to comment, saying, “Today is the first day of school, and I am thrilled,” he said, jumping into a SUV to head to a scheduled appearance at a school in Queens.

At the same time agents raided Wright’s townhouse, they simultaneously descended upon Deputy Mayor Philip Banks III’s brick and clapboard single family in Hollis, the sources said. A neighbor of Phil Banks’ home told THE CITY they woke up to a disturbance Wednesday morning and about 15 agents were on the street.

Then on Thursday the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office issued search warrants seizing the cell phones of Police Commissioner Edward Caban, a development first reported by Spectrum News NY1. Asked about this, the department’s press office responded, “The Department is aware of an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York involving members of service. The Department is fully cooperating in the investigation.”

A spokesperson for Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams declined to comment.

The New York Times reported that the FBI raided the home of a third Banks brother, Terrence, and seized electronic devices from Tim Pearson, one of another senior advisor to the mayor and one of Adams’ closest associates. In a lawsuit filed recently against Pearson alleging workplace retaliation, the plaintiff stated an FBI agent recently knocked on his door and asked about Pearson.

Adams spoke briefly with reporters as he left City Hall on Thursday afternoon.

“The goal is to follow the law and that is what this administration always stood for and what we’re going to continue to stand for,” he said.

When asked if he thought his staff followed the law, given multiple investigations, Adams said: “I think I answered the question, and that I’m going to continue to say as I’ve lived my entire life and I have confidence in the team, the team here. We’re going to follow the rules and comply with any questions that are asked of us.” 

NY Post 

Federal agents hit NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban and members of the nation’s biggest police force this week — amid a stunning spate of raids on others in Mayor Eric Adams’ inner circle, sources said Thursday.

Agents showed up to the homes of Caban, Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Phil Banks and the townhouse shared by Schools Chancellor David Banks and First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright with search warrants early Wednesday and seized their electronic devices, according to law-enforcement sources.

Phil and David Banks’ brother, Terence Banks, a former MTA official who has turned to consulting work, was also targeted in the actions, sources said.

Another top Adams aide – retired NYPD inspector Timothy Pearson – had his phones subpoenaed, according to the sources.

It wasn’t clear if the raid on the Harlem home shared by Wright and David Banks targeted one or both of them.

The connections between the raids, subpoenas and other law enforcement sweeps targeting Caban, other NYPD officials and City Hall bigwigs remained murky Thursday.

But sources said the top cop and others in the department were targeted as part of a sweeping corruption probe involving influence peddling.

Caban’s twin brother, James Caban, a former NYPD sergeant, was served a search warrant with a subpoena, sources said. Investigators are looking into his role in the world of nightlife enforcement, according to sources.

Sources confirmed that NYPD Chief of Staff Raul Pintos and two precinct commanders in Manhattan and Queens were asked to turn over their phones.

The feds also are looking into rank-and-file NYPD officers, from precinct commanders on down, who serve in Midtown South and other precincts with a strong nightlife presence, sources said.

None has been accused of any crime.

The probes are being led by federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, which has also been eyeing Adams’ 2021 campaign in another unrelated high-profile investigation, sources said.

Adams broke his daylong silence on the raids Thursday afternoon as he exited City Hall to a throng of reporters.

“As you’ve heard me say over and over again, as a former law enforcement person we will always follow the law and that is what this administration always stood for and will continue to stand for,” he said.

“Whatever information is needed, we will turn over.”

City Hall Chief Counsel Lisa Zornberg, in a statement issued shortly after the raids were publicly revealed, implied city officials weren’t the probe’s ultimate targets.

“Investigators have not indicated to us the mayor or his staff are targets of any investigation,” said Zornberg in a statement.

“As a former member of law enforcement, the mayor has repeatedly made clear that all members of the team need to follow the law.”

An NYPD spokesperson confirmed an investigation focused on police officials.

“The Department is aware of an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York involving members of service. The Department is fully cooperating in the investigation,” the spokesperson said in a statement Thursday, referring questions to Manhattan federal prosecutors.

Caban could not be reached for comment. He was appointed to the commissioner role in July 2023 after previous top cop Keechant Sewell’s surprise resignation.

As commissioner, Caban works closely with the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office that now appears to be investigating him, many of his officers and a smorgasbord of his high-ranking city government counterparts.

Representatives for the US Attorney’s office declined to comment.

When The Post tried to reach Chief of Patrol John Chell for comment about the raids and subpoenas, NYPD Deputy Commissioner for Public Information Tarik Sheppard got on the phone and called the reporter a “f—ing scumbag.”

Sources said Terence Banks is being eyed over suspicions that since his retirement, he has acted as an unregistered lobbyist, who has brought businesses to City Hall through connections to his brother in a way that circumvents conflict of interest rules, source said.

Pearson, an Adams confidante who recently made headlines for being the subject of a sexual harassment suit, has long faced scrutiny for his shady role within the administration, which includes overseeing contracts for security at migrant shelters.

Tunnel Vision Incision

⛔️ 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗡𝗢𝗪
This is video from the Queens-Midtown Tunnel showing water pouring into it.
The East River is above it
(Video by @whatisnewyork)#NYC #Tunnel pic.twitter.com/GqyYxotbcq

— Ꮃꭺꮮꮮ Ꮪꭲꭱꭼꭼꭲ Ꮪꮋꭼꭼꭲ (@wallstreetsheet) September 4, 2024

 

 NY Post

Water from the East River flowed into the the Queens Midtown Tunnel Wednesday afternoon after a drilling contractor accidentally punched a hole in the roof and caused a deluge that terrified drivers, according to officials and shocking video.

Workers were doing “investigative work related to the design of the upcoming UN esplanade project” when they punctured a hole in the edge of the tunnel, Josh Kraus of the New York City Economic Development Corporation said at a press conference.

The busy passageway sprung a leak in the south tube on the Queens side at around 12:30 p.m., prompting officials to close it for roughly 45 minutes.

Video of the massive leak, showed cars driving trough the tunnel as water cascaded down from square openings.

“Well that’s scary,” said someone in a video posted online by @whatisnewyork.

By 3 p.m. officials had reopened one lane in each direction — but traffic remained snarled.

The tunnel fully reopened hours later, according to Mayor Eric Adams.

“Both tunnels are now back open to east/west directions of travel. There will be some residual delays as traffic gets moving in the area. Please be patient,” the mayor wrote on X just after 6 p.m. 

MTA CEO Janno Lieber said city-funded private contractor caused the damage while drilling to find pylons for the East River greenway and that the hole was 2 1/2 inches in diameter in the roof, according to Fox News.

“We determined it was a drilling contractor who drilled about a 2.5 inch hole through the cast iron liner [of the tunnel],” Cathy Sheridan, President of MTA Bridges and Tunnels said at the press conference.

“We don’t know when we will be open. We hope it will be within hours and not days,” she said.

 

Caption the comptroller and the public advocate

Sunny Espionage Delight

 

NBC News 

A former top aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul was arrested Tuesday on federal charges of acting as a secret agent of the Chinese government, authorities said.

Linda Sun, 41, is accused of using her high-ranking positions in state government to serve the interests of the Chinese government and the Chinese Communist Party in exchange for millions of dollars. Her husband, Chris Hu, 40, was also arrested in the alleged scheme.

Sun was charged with violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling and money laundering. Hu was charged with money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and misuse of means of identification.

Both pleaded not guilty Tuesday afternoon. Sun was set to be released on a $1.5 million bond, her husband on a $500,000 bond.

“We are disappointed by the filing of these charges, which are inflammatory and appear to be the product of an overly aggressive prosecution," Sun's lawyers, Jarrod Schaeffer and Kenneth Abell, said in a statement after the hearing. "We are also troubled by aspects of the government’s investigation. As we said today in court, our client is eager to exercise her right to a speedy trial and to defend against these accusations in the proper forum—a court of law.”

The arrests come six weeks after FBI agents searched the couple's $3.5 million home in a gated community in Manhasset on Long Island. 

Sun worked in state government for roughly 15 years, holding positions in the administration of then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo before becoming Hochul’s deputy chief of staff, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Avi Small, a spokesman for Hochul, said Sun was hired more than a decade ago and fired in March 2023 after "evidence of misconduct" was discovered. Small said Hochul's staff immediately reported her actions to law enforcement and have assisted the authorities working the case.

According to the 64-page indictment, Sun blocked Taiwanese government representatives from getting access to high-ranking New York state officials and altered the messaging of state officials on issues of importance to the Chinese government — all at the request of Chinese officials. Sun also helped Chinese government officials travel to the U.S. and meet with New York officials by providing unauthorized invitation letters from high-level state officers, according to the indictment.

"Sun’s unauthorized invitation letters for the PRC government delegation constituted false statements made in connection with immigration documents and induced the foreign citizens into unlawfully entering the United States," Brooklyn federal prosecutors said in a press release.

"Sun never registered as a foreign agent with the Attorney General, and in fact actively concealed that she took actions at the order, request, or direction of PRC government and the CCP representatives."