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Sen. Bob Menendez Makes First Court Appearance on Bribery Charges on Wednesday
Courtesy of senatormenendez/Instagram
Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) made his first court appearance Wednesday and pleaded not guilty to charges of taking bribes and passing sensitive U.S. information to the Egyptian government.
Menendez, along with his wife, Nadine, are accused of taking bribes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange for the senator wielding his power on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to benefit the government of Egypt, as well as enriching businessmen Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daides, who were also charged. Hana pleaded not guilty on Tuesday.
According to the indictment, Menendez allegedly provided U.S. government information that “secretly aided the Government of Egypt,” and used his position as Foreign Relations chairman to facilitate military sales and other financing for Egypt.
Menendez also allegedly pressured a U.S. Department of Agriculture official to protect a contract for Hana to be the exclusive provider of halal meat to Egypt.
According to the Department of Justice, Menendez and his wife accepted bribes including “gold, cash, a luxury convertible, payments toward Nadine Menendez’s home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-show job for Nadine Menendez, home furnishings,” and other items.
Photos showed items seized from the Menendez home by the FBI, including gold bars and piles of cash.
Fellow New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker has called for Menendez’s resignation, along with around 20 other Democratic senators.
“The allegations leveled against me are just that: allegations,” Menendez said Monday, vowing to remain in office and fight the charges.
“Everything I’ve accomplished I’ve worked for despite the naysayers and everyone who has underestimated me,” he said in public remarks at Union Station in Union, N.J. “I recognize this will be the biggest fight yet. But as I have stated throughout this whole process, I firmly believe that when all the facts are presented, not only will I be exonerated, but I still will be New Jersey’s senior senator.”
Addressing the photos of cash and gold found at his home, Menendez invoked his family history in Cuba.
“For 30 years I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account which I have kept for emergencies and because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba,” Menendez said. “These were monies drawn from my personal savings account based on the income I have lawfully derived over those 30 years. I look forward to addressing other issues at trial.”
Last week, Menendez temporarily stepped down from his position as ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, according to Senate Democratic caucus rules related to felony charges.
This is Menendez’s second corruption indictment. A 2015 indictment ended in a mistrial in 2018.
TMX contributed to this article.
