Feds Allege Mar-A-Lago Malware Courier Knew Cindy Yang Event Was Cancelled

A November 22, 2018 photo shows US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida on November 22, 2018. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)
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Yujing Zhang, the woman who allegedly tried to enter Mar-a-Lago carrying malware last month, knew the event she claimed to be attending had been cancelled, south Florida federal prosecutors said Friday in a newly filed indictment.

“When asked whether she was authorized to be at the Mar-a-Lago Club and its grounds, the defendant stated she was there to attend a ‘United Nations Friendship Event,’ when in truth and in fact, and as the defendant then and there well knew, no such event was scheduled at Mar-a-Lago and its grounds,” the two-page indictment, filed on April 12, states.

That is a separate allegation from the April 1 criminal complaint, which simply said that Zhang had told Mar-a-Lago employees and Secret Service agents that she was planning on attending the event.

Zhang was charged with one count of lying to government officials and one count of entering a restricted building.

At a hearing this week, prosecutors showed a Chinese-language invitation to the “United Nations Friendship Event” that Zhang presented during her attempt to enter Mar-a-Lago. It matched an invitation displayed by south Florida massage parlor magnate Cindy Yang and featured an image of Trump’s sister Elizabeth Trump Grau.

Mar-a-Lago is seen as an intelligence risk in part because of the relatively open access it offers.

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  1. Avatar for drtv drtv says:

    So a Chinese spy, carrying all sorts of tech gear, tries to attend a non-existent event at the President’s own hotel which is guarded by virtually non-existent security, and is caught by a staff member who was at least paying some attention. Got it.

    What a shitshow.

  2. Definitely a sur-reality TV show in the offing…

  3. Avatar for paulw paulw says:

    Hotels and clubs don’t care about security directly. Is someone getting to eat or drink or sleep there without paying, or without someone else paying? Is someone doing something that disturbs the other guests? Otherwise it’s all good. (Or maybe attend some event without an invitation, but usually that’s the event’s lookout.)

  4. I thought she wanted to use the pool?

    It was only later that she mentioned the Cindy Yang non-event.

    Meanwhile… Trump has a late Friday Trifecta

    1. He doubles down (in speech and Twit) to human trafficking immigrants to sanctuary cities to spite his opposition.
    2. NYT/CNN reports he told the then CBP head (now DHS head) to break the law and close the border ahead of his 1 year schedule. If imprisoned, Trump says he would pardon him. (sounds like a good deal)
    3. NBC reports that WH wanted military to build and run migrant camps, in clear violation of law.

    Welcome to the new Banana Republic where laws are openly trashed to spite your opponents.

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