Intruder arrested at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort receiving consular services from China

Yujing Zhang is held on charges of lying to agents and illegal entering

Chinese diplomats have been informed of the arrest of a Chinese woman at President Donald Trump‘s Mar-a-Lago club over the weekend and are providing her with consular services, the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.

Spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters that the Chinese Consulate General in Houston had been notified of the 30 March arrest, had gotten in touch with the person involved and was providing her with consular assistance. Mr Geng gave no details.

Yujing Zhang is being held on charges of lying to agents and illegal entering.

Court documents allege 32-year-old Zhang told a Secret Service agent on Saturday she was a Mar-a-Lago member there to use the pool.

Agents were later summoned and they say Ms Zhang began arguing during an interview.

Agent Samuel Ivanovich wrote in court documents that Ms Zhang told him that she was there for a Chinese American event and had come early to familiarise herself with the club and take photos, contradicting what she had said at the checkpoint.

He said Ms Zhang said she had travelled from Shanghai to attend the nonexistent Mar-a-Lago event on the invitation of an acquaintance named “Charles”, whom she only knew through a Chinese social media app.

Ivanovich said Zhang carried four cellphones, a laptop computer, an external hard drive and a USB drive containing computer malware. She did not have a swimsuit.

There is no indication Ms Zhang was ever near the president or that she is connected to Li Yang, a Chinese native, Republican donor and former Florida massage parlour owner who made news recently after it was learned she was promising Chinese business leaders that her consulting firm could get them access to Mar-a-Lago, where they could mingle with the president.

There is also no indication Zhang was connected to Chinese intelligence, although her arrest has reignited concerns especially among Democrats that Trump’s use of the club constitutes a security risk as long as members and guests are allowed to come in and out while he is there.

Associated Press