A Chinese national on Wednesday trespassed at US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort and was arrested when she refused to leave, police said, the second time this year a Chinese woman has been charged with illicitly entering the Florida resort.
Lu Jing, 56, was confronted by the private club’s security officers and told to leave, but she returned to take photographs, Palm Beach Police Department spokesman Michael Ogrodnick said in an e-mail.
Police were called and arrested her, Ogrodnick said, adding that it was determined that she had an expired visa.
Lu was charged with loitering and prowling, and was being held late on Wednesday at the Palm Beach County jail.
The president and his family were not at the club — he held a rally in Michigan on Wednesday as the US House of Representatives voted to impeach him. The Trumps are expected to arrive at Mar-a-Lago by the weekend and spend the holidays there.
Lu’s arrest is reminiscent of the March arrest of Zhang Yujing (張玉靜), a 33-year-old Shanghai businesswoman who gained access to Mar-a-Lago while carrying a laptop, cellphones and other electronic gear.
That led to initial speculation that she might be a spy, but she was never charged with espionage, and text messages she exchanged with a trip organizer indicated that she was a fan of the president and wanted to meet him or his family to discuss possible deals.
Zhang was in September found guilty of trespassing and lying to US Secret Service agents, and was last month sentenced to time served. She is being held for deportation.
In another Mar-a-Lago trespassing case, a University of Wisconsin student was arrested in November last year after he mixed in with guests being admitted to the club. He pleaded guilty in May and received probation.
In both of those cases, Trump and his family were staying at the resort, but none were ever threatened.
He spends many weekends between November and April there, mingling with the club’s 500 members, who pay US$14,000 in annual dues to belong.
Federal agencies spent about US$3.4 million per Trump visit, much of it on security, according to an analysis of four 2017 trips by the US Government Accountability Office.
The Secret Service does not decide who is invited or welcome at the resort; that responsibility belongs to the club. Agents do screen guests outside the perimeter before they are screened again inside.
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