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Reuters

A US federal judge on Monday sentenced a Chinese businesswoman to eight months in prison for trespassing at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club and lying to Secret Service agents.
Judge Roy Altman also ordered that Zhang Yujing, 33, be turned over to immigration officials for deportation upon her release. Because she received nearly eight months’ credit for being jailed since her arrest March 30, she has about a week more to serve.
Altman said trespassing on a government property, particularly one where the president is staying, was a “serious offence”.
Assistant US attorney Rolando Garcia argued for an 18-month sentence, saying Zhang “lied to everybody” to get into Mar-a-Lago, including Secret Service agents, the club’s receptionist and even her taxi driver.




Garcia also pointed to the electronics found on her person and in her hotel.
“That certainly does not suggest she is some misguided tourist. She had an agenda,” he said.
He did not specify what he believed Zhang’s agenda was, but said her actions “suggest it was not just to take a photo with a famous person”.
Sentencing guidelines called for a sentence of zero to six months.
Months after her arrest at Mar-a-Lago, Zhang Yujing remains a cipher
After acting as her own lawyer at trial, Zhang allowed federal public defender Kristy Militello to help her at the hearing.
Militello told Altman that Zhang had a “fantastical idea” that she could form a business partnership with the president, whom “she deeply admired”, or his family. She said Mar-a-Lago had no rule against carrying any number of electronics. She said Zhang should be sentenced to the eight months she had already served.
When Zhang was arrested, she was carrying four cellphones, a computer and an external hard drive and her hotel contained more electronics and cash. That led to speculation she might be a spy, but she was never charged with espionage.
Instead, text messages outlined at her trial and posted to her court file after her conviction suggested she hoped to meet the president or his family to discuss possible business deals, along with other US executives.

Zhang paid US$20,000 in February to “Charles”, a man she knew only online, to attend a Chinese-American friendship event at Mar-a-Lago on March 30. The Mar-a-Lago event promised a photo with the president or a member of his family.
Zhang’s former public defenders believe “Charles” is Charles Lee, a Chinese national who ran the United Nations Chinese Friendship Association, which is not affiliated with the UN.
Charles texted Zhang in mid-March that the Mar-a-Lago event had been cancelled but he could get her into other events featuring Bill and Hillary Clinton or billionaire Warren Buffett.
Instead, Zhang demanded a refund. Prosecutors said this proved she knew the Trump meet-and-greet was off and her arrival at Mar-a-Lago was not a misunderstanding.
What was the Chinese woman arrested at Mar-a-Lago up to? An ex-spy’s take
Zhang flew to the United States on March 28. Two days later, a taxi dropped her off at the Secret Service screening area across from Mar-a-Lago.
The president and his family were visiting the club, although he was playing golf at his nearby course and Zhang was never near him.


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Donald Trump

Mar-a-Lago intruder Zhang Yujing jailed for 8 months for trespassing at Donald Trump’s resort

Zhang Yujing was sentenced to eight months in prison. Photo: Broward County, Florida

Undated photograph taken from a folder of graduation photos on Zhang's social media account.

‘Not a wandering tourist’: Mar-a-Lago intruder Zhang Yujing found guilty of trespass and lying to Secret Services by Florida jury

Zhang Yujing (pictured) has been convicted on two counts after trespassing on the Mar-a-Lago hotel owned by US President Donald Trump.

FILE - In this April 15, 2019, file court sketch, Yujing Zhang, left, a Chinese woman charged with lying to illegally enter President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club, listens to a hearing before Magistrate Judge William Matthewman in West Palm Beach, Fla. Zhang, 33, who is accused of trespassing at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club and lying to Secret Service agents will be tried by a jury after frustrating the federal judge hearing her case. Zhang is acting as her own attorney but repeatedly did not answer Judge Roy Altman's questions Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2019, including when he asked if she had considered a prosecution suggestion that he decide her guilt or innocence. (Daniel Pontet via AP, File)

=== PHOTO CAPTURED ONLINE=== Undated photograph taken from a folder of graduation photos on Zhang's social media account

Naive tourist? Bumbling spy? Months after her arrest at Mar-a-Lago, Zhang Yujing remains a cipher

(FILES) This file photo taken on April 18, 2018, shows US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. - A Chinese woman carrying multiple cellphones and thumb drives bearing malware was arrested on March 30, 2019, at the resort while the president was staying there, court documents revealed on April 2. An arrest document in the federal district court of Palm Beach, Florida says Zhang Yujing tried to gain entry into Mar-a-Lago on Saturday, first claiming she was a member headed to the pool and then claiming to be attending a non-existent Chinese-American event. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP)

Undated photograph taken from a folder of graduation photos on Zhang's social media account

Undated photograph taken from Zhang Yujing's account on the Chinese social media platform Renren. Photo: Renren

Mar-a-Lago intruder Zhang Yujing’s trial off to rocky start with argument over underwear

Zhang Yujing in a photo posted on her social media account.

Photo of Yujing Zhang's passport. (Photo of Yujing Zhang's passport/Miami Herald/TNS)

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club is shown ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., August 31, 2019. REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo

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Chinese national had bluffed her way into the exclusive club, sparking fears she posed intelligence threat
Judge orders Zhang, 33, to be turned over to immigration officials for deportation upon her release



Judge orders Chinese national to be turned over to immigration officials for deportation upon her release.
