Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) lashed out on Friday after he and his wife Nadine were indicted on bribery charges by federal prosecutors, suggesting that he was the victim of a vast conspiracy.
“For years, forces behind the scenes have repeatedly attempted to silence my voice and dig my political grave,” said the 69-year-old senator. “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.”
“The excesses of these prosecutors is apparent. They have misrepresented the normal work of a Congressional office,” he claimed. “Those behind this campaign simply cannot accept that a first-generation Latino American from humble beginnings could rise to be a U.S. Senator and serve with honor and distinction. Even worse, they see me as an obstacle in the way of their broader political goals.”
Menendez claimed that he had been “falsely accused before” by prosecutors and encouraged people to “reserve judgement” in this case because when the facts are presented “my fellow New Jerseyans will see this for what it is.”
Menendez faces charges of conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right.
The indictment says that Menendez and his wife had a corrupt relationship with New Jersey businessmen Wael Hana, Jose Uribe, and Fred Daibes, who allegedly gave the senator bribes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. According to the DOJ, the bribes were intended to protect the businessmen and to benefit Egypt.
“Those bribes included cash, gold, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-show job, a luxury vehicle, and other things of value,” the indictment said. Federal authorities reportedly found gold bars and cash stuffed throughout the senator’s home that they traced back to the businessmen Menendez allegedly worked with.
“Over $480,000 in cash — much of it stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe — was discovered in the home,” the indictment said. Photos included in the indictment included pictures of gold bars and hundred dollars bills that had been stuffed in clothing.
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Menendez is also accused of ghostwriting a letter to other senators to urge them to support to end a hold on $300 million in military aid to Egypt, a letter that was reportedly written in coordination with his wife and the businessmen in question. Other aspects of the indictment focus in on Menendez’s involvement with IS EG Halal, a business that prosecutors say was used to funnel bribery payments and one of the businessman’s alleged payments for a Mercedes Benz used by Nadine Menendez.
Menendez has faced multiple scandals during his time in the Senate, and has previously been indicted over bribery accusations.
In 2015, Menendez was indicted on bribery charges for allegedly accepting “luxury vacations, golf outings, campaign donations and expensive flights” from Florida physician Salomon Melgen in exchange for political favors. A federal jury in Florida convicted Melgen in April of “67 charges for operating what prosecutors called a massive scheme that robbed Medicare out of as much as $105 million,” the Palm Beach Post reported. Menendez was never convicted after his time in court ended in a mistrial.
Prosecutors began investigating Menendez when they were tipped off in 2012 that Menendez was allegedly having sex with underage prostitutes in the Dominican Republic.
Leif Le Mahieu contributed to this report.