Federal prosecutors in New York have said they intend to charge Democrat Senator Bob Menendez and his wife on Friday.
A press conference will be held today at 11:00 a.m. to announce the unsealing of an indictment charging Robert Menendez, U.S. Senator from New Jersey, and his wife, Nadine Menendez, with bribery offenses in connection with their corrupt relationship with three New Jersey businessmen, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
“This would be the second time Menendez has been indicted. He stood trial several years ago but that ended in a mistrial. The New Jersey Democrat is up for reelection next year,” Politico reported.
“The first time Menendez was indicted, he had been accused of using his political influence to help a Florida eye doctor who had lavished him with gifts and campaign contributions. Menendez appears to be the first sitting senator in U.S. history to have been indicted on two unrelated criminal allegations, according to a list maintained by the Senate Historical Office,” the New York Post reported. “The new charges follow a yearslong investigation that examined, among other things, the dealings of a New Jersey businessman — a friend of Menendez’s wife — who secured sole authorization from the Egyptian government to certify that meat imported into that country meets Islamic dietary requirements. Investigators also asked questions about the Menendez family’s interactions with a New Jersey developer.”
“Menendez faces re-election next year in a bid to extend his three-decade career in Washington, and as Democrats hold a narrow majority in the Senate. Menendez’s political career had looked as though it might be over in 2015, when a federal grand jury in New Jersey indicted him on multiple charges over favors he did for a friend, Dr. Salomon Melgen,” the outlet added.
The head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee of the US Congress, Robert Menendez, has been charged with corruption pic.twitter.com/gMDzhHA6tJ
— Sprinter (@Sprinter99800) September 22, 2023
Menendez was accused of putting pressure on government officials to settle a Medicare billing dispute in Melgen’s favor, obtaining visas for the doctor’s girlfriends, and assisting in the protection of a contract the doctor had with the Dominican Republic to provide port-screening equipment.
Menendez has always claimed innocence. His lawyers claimed that Melgen’s…
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