Verdict Reached In New Jersey Dem Sen. Menendez’s Corruption Trial
The jury reached a verdict on Tuesday in the federal corruption trial of Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and two of his business associates, Fred Daibes and Wael Hana, after a grueling nine-week complex trial in Manhattan.
Menendez pleaded not guilty to federal charges that he accepted an array of bribes in exchange for helping foreign governments. Jurors deliberated for three days, Fox News reported.
“Prosecutors have not come close to meeting their burden to show you that any of the gold or cash was given to Senator Menendez as a bribe,” Menendez’s defense attorney, Adam Fee, claimed in his closing statements, which concluded last Wednesday. “The absence of evidence should be held against the prosecution,” he added.
Federal prosecutor Paul Monteleoni spent five hours in his closing argument on Tuesday, urging jurors to hold the New Jersey Democrat accountable for his alleged misconduct.
“This is a big case,” Monteleoni said. “But it all boils down to a classic case of corruption on a massive scale.”
During the trial, prosecutors presented emails and text messages from Menendez, along with FBI testimony, to demonstrate that the senator allegedly accepted extravagant gifts from foreign governments. These gifts included gold bars worth over $100,000 and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash found throughout Menendez’s New Jersey home, Fox reported.
Menendez was charged by federal prosecutors with 18 counts after pleading not guilty last year. All the charges are related to an alleged multiyear bribery scheme involving the governments of Egypt and Qatar.
In March, an 18-page indictment was added to the existing charges against Menendez and his co-defendants, including his wife, Nadine. The indictment alleges that they acted as foreign agents and accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes to use Menendez’s power and influence as a senator to benefit the Egyptian government, the report said.
The indictment followed co-defendant Jose Uribe’s acceptance of a plea deal, where he agreed to cooperate with prosecutors after allegedly gifting Nadine a Mercedes convertible. The charges against Menendez include conspiracy, bribery, acting as a foreign agent, extortion, and wire fraud.
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