US federal prosecutors on Friday indicted New Jersey Democratic Senator Robert “Bob” Menendez and his wife Nadine Arslanian on charges of bribery.
Menendez reacted to the announcement by claiming to be the victim of “an active smear campaign,” adding that he “will not be distracted” from his “important” work in the Senate. His wife, too, claimed innocence and pledged to, “vigorously defend herself” against the charges in court.
Prosecutors had brought a separate similar case against Menendez, 69, six years ago yet failed to win a conviction when the jury remained deadlocked over the question of his guilt.
The new charges were filed after federal investigators turned up nearly $600,000 (roughly €560,000) in gold and cash hidden at Menendez and Arslanian’s home during a search.
Menendez, who has served in the Senate since 2006, now faces the ignominy of being the only sitting US senator to ever be charged in two separate felony crimes as he runs for re-election next year.
President Joe Biden’s Democratic party currently holds a razor thin 51-49 majority in the Senate.
Three counts of bribery each, prosecutors seek asset forfeiture Menendez and his wife are accused of having received cash, gold, mortgage payments, compensation for a job with minimal requirements, a luxury car and other gifts in exchange for Menendez’ help in various legal and political instances.
Both Menendez and Arslanian face three counts each of conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right.
Prosecutors say they are seeking the forfeiture of Menendez and Arslanian’s assets — including their New Jersey home, a 2019 Mercedes-Benz, and roughly $566,000 in cash, gold and bank funds.
Neither the senator’s office nor legal counsel have responded to the charges. Menendez first publicly disclosed that he was the subject of a new federal investigation last October.
Senate Historical Office records show that a total of 13 senators have ever been indicted while in office. Six were convicted, but two of those convictions were overturned.
Immigrant son makes good, gains political influence — sells favors? Menendez, the son of Cuban immigrants, has held public office continuously since 1986, when he was elected mayor of Union City, New Jersey. He then became a state legislator and spent 14 years in the US House of Representatives.
He became a US senator in 2006, when Jon Corzine appointed him to the seat Corzine vacated when he was elected governor of New Jersey. During his time in the Senate, Menendez has built his influence, becoming the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Menendez’ previous brush with federal prosecutors stemmed from allegations that he had received lavish gifts and campaign contributions from a wealthy Florida eye doctor in exchange for the senator’s help in resolving a Medicare billing dispute, procuring a visa for the doctor’s girlfriend and protecting a lucrative business deal the doctor had in the Dominican Republic.
Menendez claimed that in his view the luxury trips to Paris and the Dominican Republic and the other gifts the doctor had paid for were tokens of friendship, not payment for political favors.
Re-elected to the Senate after hung jury forced feds to drop case Menendez was largely thought to be at the end of his political career as he faced federal bribery charges in 2016, yet prosecutors were forced to drop their case after failing to convince a jury of the his wrongdoing.
The New Jersey Democrat was later reprimanded by the Senate Ethics Committee for having accepted undisclosed gifts in exchange for using his influence to enrich his Florida benefactor.
The donor, Salomon Melgen, was convicted of healthcare fraud in 2017, but his sentence was commuted by then-President Donald Trump.
Menendez went on to defy odds and win re-election in the 2018 midterm election against a well-financed opponent.
His is largely expected to seek re-election next November.
Among the accusations facing Menendez now are claims that he accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of gifts in exchange for enriching three New Jersey businessmen, as well as passing sensitive US government information to Egyptian government officials.
Among other things, Menendez is said to have ghost-written a letter on behalf of Egypt, urging other senators to lift a hold on $300 million in aid to the country.
js/msh (AP, Reuters)
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