September 24, (THEWILL) – A U.S. Senator, Robert Menendez and his 56-year-old wife, Nadine, have been indicted in New York, on federal bribery charges, for allegedly accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, gold bars, a Mercedes-Benz convertible, home mortgage payments, as well as “corrupt relationship” with three Garden State businessmen, Fred Daibes, Wael “Will” Hana, and Jose Uribe.
The 69-year-old senior Democrat Senator from New Jersey, who is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is facing a three-count charge.
Menendez and Nadine got married in October 2020. Nadine was “for many years” a friend of Hana, a 40-year-old native of Egypt.
According to the indictment, after she began dating Menendez, she and Hana introduced the senator to “Egyptian intelligence and military officials… for the purpose of establishing and solidifying a corrupt agreement” to bribe him and Nadine to benefit Egypt with military sales and financing.
As Foreign Relations chairman, Menendez had influence over the Executive Branch’s decisions to provide military sales and aid to Egypt.
According to the indictment document from the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), Menendez allegedly “provided sensitive U.S. Government information and took other steps that secretly aided the government of Egypt”, and pressured a U.S. Agriculture Department official to protect a business monopoly in Egypt for one of the three businessmen.
He is also being accused of using his office and influence to disrupt a criminal probe in New Jersey of a second businessman.
Menendez also allegedly recommended that President Joe Biden nominate a certain individual as U.S. Attorney for New Jersey because he believed that person could be influenced to disrupt the banking crime prosecution of Daibes, his longtime fundraiser.
According to the indictment document, during a June 2022 raid on the Menendez’ New Jersey home and a safe deposit box, federal agents found cash, gold and a luxury vehicle that were the “fruits of (the couple’s) corrupt bribery agreement” with the businessmen.
“Over $480,000 in cash — much of it stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe —was discovered in the home, along with over $70,000 in Nadine Menendez’s safe deposit box. Some of the envelopes contained the fingerprints and/or DNA of the 66-year-old Daibes or his driver”, the indictment said.
In addition to the cash, agents also seized 81.5 ounces of gold bars worth about $155,000.
Federal prosecutors are seeking the forfeiture of those items, as well as the residence of the Menendez in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.
Menendez and Nadine are charged with three counts: Conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under the colour of official right.
The three other defendants are facing a two-count charge: Conspiracy to commit bribery and conspiracy to commit honest services fraud.
“This investigation is very much ongoing. We are not done”, said Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams at a press conference on the charges against the senator, his wife and the three businessmen.
They are all due to appear before a Manhattan federal court on Wednesday morning.
