New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez found GUILTY in corruption trial

A jury has found U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) guilty of 16 counts of public corruption, making him “the first sitting member of Congress to be charged with conspiracy by a public official to act as a foreign agent.”

The senator for the Garden State was accused of selling his office for bribes and assisting the foreign governments of Egypt and Qatar. According to the National Pulse, the charges Menendez was guilty of include conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit extortion and obstruction of justice. Each count carries a potential sentence of upwards of 20 years.

The jury deliberated for about 13 hours over three days before reaching the verdict. Menendez entered a not guilty plea to all 16 charges. Until his federal indictment, he was chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, according to Breitbart News.

Federal prosecutors accused the New Jersey Democrat of acting as an unregistered foreign agent for the Arab Republic of Egypt. He worked to disrupt the prosecution of Jose Uribe, an associate and long-time donor to the senator’s campaign – leading to the obstruction of justice charge.

The senator and his wife Nadine reportedly received payments in cash, gold bars and a luxury vehicle for their efforts on behalf of Uribe and the Egyptian government. According to prosecutors, the scheme to ensure military aid for Cairo ran through Nadine and Egyptian-American businessman Wael “Will” Hana.

In September, a federal grand jury in the Southern District of New York indicted Bob over allegations of public corruption involving attempts to influence a federal prosecution and participation in a foreign influence operation. Before this, the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided his home and found gold bars and more than $400,000 in cash stashed in various spots in the residence. (Related: New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife charged with BRIBERY.)

Stuffing cash in jackets a “Cuban thing”

“It wasn’t enough for him to be one of the most powerful people in Washington,” said Paul Monteleoni, assistant U.S. attorney, on July 8. “[Bob] wanted all that power, and he also wanted to use it to pile up riches for himself and his wife.”

Monteleoni and other federal prosecutors told the jury that Bob promised to use his power to help Egypt. The indictment stated that the arrangement was brokered by Hana, a friend of Nadine. Hana also received the senator’s help preserving a halal meat monopoly, prosecutors said.

During the trial, Bob’s sister Caridad Gonzalez was asked why the member of Congress had so much cash stuffed into his congressional jacket. “It’s a Cuban thing,” she replied. The Pulse mentioned that the trial for Nadine has been delayed as she receives treatment for breast cancer.

Defense attorney Adam Fee claimed that the case against Bob was “cherry-picked” nonsense, noting: “His actions were lawful, normal and good for the country.” He also accused prosecutors of “fudging” the facts of the case.

Last month, Bob announced that he would run for reelection in New Jersey as an independent candidate – skipping the Democratic primary. But polling conducted in October of last year found that North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un was viewed more favorably in the Garden State than the senator.

Head over to Corruption.news for similar stories.

Watch this video explaining why the indictment of New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez is just the tip of the iceberg.

This video is from the Red Voice Media channel on Brighteon.com.

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Sources include:

TheNationalPulse.com

Breitbart.com

Brighteon.com