Hui Qin, of Old Westbury, made illegal political contributions of $11G to New York City, congressional candidates

A Chinese billionaire with homes in Old Westbury and Manhattan pleaded guilty Monday in federal court in Central Islip to illegally making $11,600 in straw donations to city and congressional campaigns in New York.

Hui Qin, 56, a citizen of China and the operator of SMI Culture, a Hong Kong-based entertainment entity, also pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Steven L. Tiscione to immigration fraud and producing a false identification document.

Qin faces up to 27 years in prison when he is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Joan Azrack on May 14, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace said in a statement.

But prosecutor Bradley King told Tiscione the government will seek a sentence of 6 months or less as part of Qin’s plea agreement with prosecutors.

Qin will likely face deportation after he is released, Tiscione said.

Henry Mazurek, an attorney for Qin, declined to comment after Monday’s plea hearing.

Between December 2021 and December 2022, according to prosecutors, Qin agreed to reimburse other individuals who made campaign contributions on his behalf to a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from the Eastern District of New York, a candidate for a Rhode Island congressional seat and a New York City-wide office.

Qin’s straw donors made approximately $11,600 in contributions on his behalf, without the knowledge of the campaign committees. The campaigns filed false contribution reports with the Federal Election Commission in 2022 as a result of Qin’s actions, prosecutors said.

“Qin pleaded guilty today to engaging in a brazen web of deception, spreading lies to federal election and immigration authorities and a state agency,” Peace said. “Ensuring election integrity and rooting out campaign contribution fraud are priorities of the Department of Justice, including my office.”

Qin also admitted as part of his plea that he filed a false application for lawful permanent resident status in April 2019 with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Qin swore in his application, under penalty of perjury, that he had never used another name. Prosecutors said a People’s Republic of China official provided Qin with the alias “Muk Lam Li” between 2008 and the filing of his residency application.

Qin obtained identification documents, including a Hong Kong identification card, a Chinese identification card and a Hong Kong passport in the name of the Li alias, which contained Qin’s photograph, prosecutors said. In or around September 2017, Qin used the Li alias to transfer more than $5 million from China to a United States bank account, He used some of those funds to purchase a luxury Manhattan apartment.

Qin also admitted on Monday he engaged in interstate travel to fraudulently obtain a Florida driver’s license in December 2020. Prosecutors said he traveled from New York to Florida and applied for a driver’s license with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Qin signed an application that said he lived in Miami, even though he was a resident of Manhattan and Old Westbury at the time.

Florida officials issued Qin a driver’s license, which he presented to banks and a motor vehicle insurer as identification, prosecutors said.