Chinese Billionaire Pleads Guilty to Making Straw Donation in New York and Rhode Island

The Department of Justice, in Washington on Jan. 4, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

A Chinese billionaire pleaded guilty on March 18 to engaging in a straw-donor scheme that funneled more than $10,000 in illicit contributions to multiple New York City and congressional candidates, according to prosecutors.

Qin Hui, a 56-year-old Chinese citizen with homes in Old Westbury and Manhattan, pleaded guilty in federal court in Central Islip, New York. He admitted that between 2021 and 2022, he gave money to others to make political contributions on his behalf.

The court documents filed by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn don’t name the candidates. However, they identify receivers as a sitting member of the House of Representatives who represented the Eastern District of New York, a New York City public official, and a candidate for a Rhode Island congressional seat.

Mr. Qin was included on Forbes magazine’s list of the world’s billionaires in 2018, with an estimated net worth of $1.8 billion from his stake in film companies, including the Hong Kong-based entertainment entity SMI Culture.

He has been incarcerated since his arrest in October 2023.

On March 18, Mr. Qin also pleaded guilty to immigration fraud and producing a false identification document.

Prosecutors said Mr. Qin faces up to 27 years in prison. As part of his plea deal, he agreed to abandon his status as a lawful permanent resident and be removed from the United States after serving the sentence.

Public Finance Records

According to records on the New York City Campaign Finance Board, Qin Hui made a $2,000 donation to Mayor Eric Adams in March 2021.

Vito Pitta, an attorney for Mr. Adams in 2021, told The Epoch Times, “As the federal government made clear today, the campaign had no knowledge of a straw donor scheme—and no member of the campaign has been charged with or accused of any wrongdoing.”

Records from the Federal Election Commission show that in October 2022, Mr. Qin contributed $2,900 to Allan Fung, a Republican who was seeking to represent Rhode Island’s Second Congressional District at the time.

Mr. Fung’s campaign didn’t respond by press time to The Epoch Times’ request for comment.

Chris Pack, a spokesman for Mr. Fung, said in a media statement that they “had no knowledge of this individual’s donor scheme” and didn’t know him.

“[Mr. Fung] applauds the prosecution of bad actors in our election process,” Mr. Pack said.

Straw-Donor Scheme

The prosecutors said that around December 2021, Mr. Qin and two co-conspirators agreed to “find individuals to make more than $10,000 in straw donor contributions” to an unnamed candidate who was running for office in New York City.

Around Dec. 8, 2021, Mr. Qin contributed $1,000 to the citywide candidate through a U.S. citizen. The next day, he contacted an unnamed co-conspirator, asking him to find straw donors. In response, the co-conspirator agreed to assist these efforts, saying that he “anticipated being able to obtain up to $20,000 in straw donor contributions,” according to prosecutors.

Between February 2022 and March 2022, Mr. Qin made $8,700 in similar straw donor contributions to a New York congressperson and $2,900 to a Rhode Island congressional candidate.

Prosecutors said Mr. Qin hid his illicit funding efforts from the officials they were intended to benefit, causing the candidates “unwittingly” to file false reports with the Federal Election Commission in 2022.

“Qin pleaded guilty today to engaging in a brazen web of deception, spreading lies to federal election and immigration authorities and a state agency,” Breon Peace, the top federal prosecutor in Brooklyn, said in a statement.

“Ensuring election integrity and rooting out campaign contribution fraud are priorities of the Department of Justice, including my Office,“ he said. ”No one is above the law, no matter their wealth or station in society, and this Office will vigorously prosecute all criminals who lie to government agencies to further their own ends.”

Other Charges

Mr. Qin also admitted that he filed a false application for permanent residency status in April 2019, in which he claimed to have never used another name.

In fact, the prosecutors said, a Chinese government official provided Mr. Qin with identification documents and the alias “Muk Lam Li” in 2008.

According to prosecutors, in 2017, Mr. Qin used that identity to transfer more than $5 million from China to a U.S. bank account and used a portion of the money to purchase a luxury apartment in Manhattan.

“Qin is a citizen of the People’s Republic of China, but made straw donations to major political campaigns, hiding the true source of the political contribution from the public,” Thomas Fattorusso, special agent-in-charge of IRS Criminal Investigation, said in a statement. “Not only is this unethical, it’s illegal.

“Qin traveled to the United States, obtained a false visa, willfully violated our laws, then sought to conceal his behavior. IRS Criminal Investigation remains committed to using our expertise, working alongside our law enforcement partners, to detect and hold those accountable who believe rules of law simply do not apply to them.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.