Washington: U.S. Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, who was accused of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, including cash, gold bars and a Mercedes-Benz, was found guilty on all counts Tuesday in his federal corruption trial.
Federal prosecutors in New York alleged the New Jersey senator, formerly the head of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, accepted bribes in exchange for helping foreign governments.
A jury convicted Menendez of 16 federal charges including bribery, fraud, acting as a foreign agent
and obstruction after more than 12 hours of deliberation over three days.
Prosecutors said that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) discovered gold bars and over 400,000 U.S. dollars in cash hidden in various locations such as jackets and shoes within his residence.
Prosecutors alleged that in return for the bribes, Menendez assisted in securing millions of dollars in U.S. aid for Egypt.
Two businessmen are facing trial for allegedly seeking the senator’s assistance illegally to benefit the Egyptian government and secure millions of dollars from a Qatari investment fund. A third businessman pleaded guilty.
“This wasn’t politics as usual; this was politics for profit,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, whose office prosecuted the case, said in a statement, citing “shocking levels of corruption.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the top Democrat in the upper chamber, immediately called on Menendez to resign from the Senate after the conviction.
“In light of this guilty verdict, Sen. Menendez must now do what is right for his constituents, the Senate, and our country, and resign,” Schumer said in a statement.
In September 2023, Menendez willingly decided to step down from his position as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee after prosecutors revealed the charges against him.
Menendez’s conviction came as one of the piling up scandals in Congress. In December 2023, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to expel New York Republican George Santos from Congress over the lies, scandals and alleged campaign finance crimes.
