UPDATE 2-Chinese woman arrested at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort to remain in custody


Reuters | Updated: 09-04-2019 01:02 IST | Created: 09-04-2019 01:02 IST
UPDATE 2-Chinese woman arrested at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort to remain in custody

A Chinese woman charged with bluffing her way into President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Florida resort last month, renewing concerns about security at the club, will spend at least another week in custody, a federal magistrate ruled on Monday. The woman, Yujing Zhang, was arrested after giving conflicting reasons for being at the club during one of Trump's routine weekend visits. According to prosecutors, she was carrying four cell phones, a laptop computer, an external hard drive and a thumb drive containing what investigators described as "malicious malware."

A search of her hotel room turned up a device to detect hidden cameras, five cell phone SIM cards and over $8,000 in cash, federal prosecutors said as they urged Magistrate Judge William Matthewman to keep Zhang in custody during a hearing in U.S. District Court in West Palm Beach, Florida. "She lies to everyone she encounters," Assistant U.S. Attorney Rolando Garcia said during the hearing. "She has no ties to the United States."

Matthewman agreed to keep Zhang in custody. The FBI is examining whether Zhang has any links to Chinese intelligence or political influence operations, two U.S. government sources told Reuters last week.

Zhang told one of the U.S. Secret Service agents who protect Mar-a-Lago that she was there to use the pool and later told a second agent that she had been invited to a U.N. Chinese American Association event, though club officials determined no such event was scheduled. She was arrested after agents determined she had no legitimate reason to be at the club, a business owned by Trump. Defense attorney Robert Adler described the incident as a "misunderstanding."

"The only thing Ms. Zhang did was give a common name and she was allowed onto the property," Adler said. "I don't understand how this could be a trespass charge." Zhang has been charged with making false statements to a federal officer and entering or remaining in a restricted area, charges that carry up to a five-year sentence in federal prison if she is convicted. She is 32 or 33 years old, according to documents filed in federal court.

Congressional Democrats raised questions on Wednesday about security at the club, where Trump is in close and frequent contact with club members and guests. The president brushed off the concerns, calling the incident a "fluke" and praising the Secret Service. (Reporting by Zachary Fagenson; Writing by Scott Malone; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Leslie Adler)

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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