US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort is seen in Palm Beach, Florida. Photos / AP file
US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort is seen in Palm Beach, Florida. Photos / AP file
A Chinese woman charged with lying to get past security at US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club appeared in court, where prosecutors argued she was so untrustworthy she should remain in jail while authorities continue to investigate her.
Yujing Zhang was arrested on March 30 by the Secret Service after she bypassed layers of security and got as far as the reception area of the club, which stays open for its members and their guests when the President is there.
The incident has amplified concerns that the Florida resort where Trump and his advisers spend so much time is difficult to secure.
Those concerns were heightened in part because when Zhang was arrested, she was carrying a thumb drive with malicious software on it, four phones, a laptop, and a separate hard drive, authorities said. She was charged with lying to Secret Service agents and entering restricted space.
A subsequent search of Zhang's hotel room turned up more that alarmed investigators: nine thumb drives, five SIM cards for cellphones, about US$8,000 in cash, several credit and debit cards, and a device used to detect hidden cameras, officials said.
At a detention hearing in federal court to determine whether she should be released on bond pending her trial, prosecutors described her in blunt, harsh terms.
"She lies to everyone she encounters," said Assistant US Attorney Rolando Garcia, though he added there is "no allegation that she is involved in any espionage."
Zhang's lawyer, Robert Adler, countered with a different, possibly exculpatory revelation - he said his client had paid businessman Charles Lee US$20,000 to get into Mar-a-Lago.
That claim is significant because before the incident, Lee had come under scrutiny as an event promoter who runs a group called the United Nations Chinese Friendship Association. Zhang had claimed to authorities that she was at Mar-a-Lago to attend an event that day hosted by a group with a nearly identical name. Authorities have said there was no such event scheduled at the resort that day.
The Miami Herald has previously reported that Lee sold travel packages to Chinese customers that included tickets to Mar-a-Lago events. Some of the tickets were provided by Li "Cindy" Yang, a South Florida massage-parlour entrepreneur who resold tickets to banquet events at Trump's club, the Herald reported.
US President Donald Trump.
During Zhang's interview following her arrest, she claimed her Chinese friend "Charles" told her to travel from Shanghai to Palm Beach to attend this event and attempt to speak with a member of the President's family about Chinese and American economic relations, according to the criminal complaint filed against her. At the time, she offered no more information about him, or his last name, officials said.
As part of the hearing, Secret Service agent Samuel Ivanovich testified about his questioning of Zhang, and acknowledged a major misstep in investigation's early hours. The agent said he documented about six hours of questioning on video, but when investigators played it back, they realised audio of the conversation had not recorded.
Ivanovich also testified that when the thumb drive they recovered from Zhang at the club was inserted into another agent's computer "a file immediately began to install itself." The agent, Ivanovich said, had never seen that happen before.
"He knew it was something out of the ordinary," Ivanovich said. "He had to immediately stop his analysis and shut down his computer in order to stop it."
Tracing her movements, authorities determined she entered the country legally on March 28, flying into Newark, on a flight from Shanghai.
Two days later, Zhang allegedly approached a Mar-a-Lago security checkpoint and told security officials she was there to go to the swimming pool.
Initially, Mar-a-Lago employees seemed to think she might be a guest of one of the club's members, whose last name also is Zhang.
It sounds less like Zhang was carrying a thumb drive that was randomly infected & more like it was targeted to launch when connected. We need a President who is more committed to national security than personal profit. No telling what damage this could have done if undetected. https://t.co/M99ZRN70JH
"Zhang was asked if the true member . . . was her father, but she did not give a definitive answer," according to the criminal complaint filed by Secret Service agent Samuel Ivanovich. "Zhang additionally did not give a definitive answer when asked if she was there to meet with anyone. Due to a potential language barrier issue, Mar-a-Lago believed her to be the relative of member Zhang and allowed her access onto the property."
There is no indication she ever got close to the President, who was in south Florida that afternoon and golfing nearby.
Once on the resort grounds, Zhang was approached by a receptionist and asked why she was there.
"After being asked several times, Zhang finally responded that she was there for a United Nations Chinese American Association event later in the evening," the complaint says.
"The Receptionist knew this event did not exist," it says, but when the Secret Service agent, Ivanovich, followed up with additional questions, Zhang allegedly said she had arrived early for the event so she could "familiarise herself with the property and take pictures."
At that point, Zhang presented documentation that she said was her invitation to the event, but it was written in Chinese and the agent could not read it.
Secret Service agents took Zhang to a different location to interview her, at which point she became "verbally aggressive," according to the charging document.
