NEW YORK (AP) — Sen. Bob Menendez was charged Friday with secretly aiding the authoritarian regime of Egypt and trying to thwart the criminal prosecution of a friend in exchange for gold bars and cash as prosecutors unsealed a corruption indictment that accuses him of using his foreign affairs influence for personal gain.
The indictment, the second in eight years against the powerful 69-year-old New Jersey Democrat, alleges an illegal commingling of Menendez’s professional obligations as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to advance U.S. priorities and his private interests in cultivating relationships with wealthy businessmen.
The indictment — coming years after an earlier criminal case against Menendez ended with a deadlocked jury — also charges the senator’s wife and three New Jersey businessmen who authorities say showered the couple with money, gold and a luxury car in exchange for his actions on their behalf.
Menendez is also accused of trying to derail the criminal case against one of the businessmen by pushing to install Philip R. Sellinger as U.S. attorney for New Jersey because Menendez believed he could influence Sellinger. Prosecutors say he also tried to use his position of power to try to meddle in a separate investigation by the New Jersey Attorney General’s office.
Authorities found more than $100,00 worth of gold bars in Menendez’s home, and $480,000 in cash — much of it hidden in closets, clothing and a safe, prosecutors say. Photos included in the indictment show cash that was stuffed in envelopes found in jackets bearing Menendez’s name. Authorities found a Google search by Menendez for “how much is one kilo of gold worth” and DNA of one his co-defendants on an envelope in Menendez’s home filled with thousands of dollars of cash, they said.
Prosecutors allege Menendez took repeated actions to benefit Egypt despite US. government misgivings over the country’s human rights record that in recent years has prompted Congress to impose restrictions on aids. His steps include ghost-writing a letter to fellow senators encouraging them to lift a hold on $300 million in aid to Egypt as well as transmitting non-public information to Egyptian officials about military issues, the indictment says.
Menendez in an emailed statement accused prosecutors of misrepresenting “the normal work of a congressional office.”
“For years, forces behind the scenes have repeatedly attempted to silence my voice and dig my political grave,” Menendez said. “Since this investigation was leaked nearly a year ago, there has been an active smear campaign of anonymous sources and innuendos to create an air of impropriety where none exists.”
He said he has been falsely accused of accepting bribes and “will not be distracted” from work in the Senate.
David Schertler, a lawyer for Menendez’s wife, Nadine, said she “denies any criminal conduct and will vigorously contest these charges in court.”
Menendez appears to be the first sitting senator in U.S. history to have been indicted on two unrelated criminal matters, according to the Senate Historical Office. He faces reelection next year in a bid to extend his three-decade career in Washington as Democrats hold a narrow majority in the Senate.
Egypt has long been a top recipient of U.S. government aid — more than $1 billion a year — thanks to overriding American national security interests in the region, but the relationship has been tested by concerns over human rights abuses in the country.
As chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, Menendez has influence on executive branch decisions on military spending and aid to foreign countries including Egypt as well as the ability to recommend “holds” on financing that the State Department historically respects.
Prosecutors allege Menendez and his wife accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from three business associates, Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daibes. He used his influence to push to nominate Sellinger as U.S. attorney because he believed he could influence Sellinger to protect Daibes, a longtime friend and prominent New Jersey developer who faced criminal prosecution, they said. Sellinger is not accused of any wrongdoing.
The White House declined to comment on the indictment, including on Biden’s nomination Sellinger, and referred all questions to the Justice Department.
