A jury discovered Nadine Menendez responsible on all counts in a bribery case through which prosecutors stated she was a “critical participant” within the five-year fraud along with her husband, former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, as they accepted money, gold bars and a luxurious automobile from three New Jersey males in search of assist with enterprise dealings or authorized woes.
The jury started contemplating the costs in opposition to the 58-year-old on Friday in Manhattan federal court docket. They returned the responsible verdict late Monday afternoon on all 15 counts she confronted, together with bribery, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, working as a overseas agent and extra.
Menendez, carrying a pink facemask, stood beside her protection legal professional as the decision was learn following the three-week trial. Sentencing was scheduled for June 12.
She was discovered responsible in the identical federal courthouse in Manhattan the place a special jury convicted her husband of most of the identical costs in 2024. He was not within the courthouse for Monday’s responsible verdict.
Prosecutors stated Nadine Menendez was a companion in her husband’s crimes, serving to to gather payoffs from three New Jersey businessmen in a wide-ranging scheme. The protection argued among the gold she obtained was not bribes, however somewhat have been handed down from her household or have been items from businessmen who have been longtime associates. NBC New York’s Jonathan Dienst experiences.
Her husband, the 71-year-old former senator, is ready to report back to jail in June to start an 11-year sentence. He stepped down from his Senate publish after his conviction. Repeatedly in the course of the trial, prosecutors stated Bob and Nadine Menendez have been “companions in crime,” detailing the timeline of the whirlwind romance between the couple that started in early 2018 and continued after prison costs have been introduced in opposition to them in Sept. 2023.
“Over the span of five years, Nadine Menendez agreed to accept and accepted all sorts of bribes – including gold bars, cash, a Mercedes-Benz convertible, and a no-show job – all in exchange for the Senator’s corrupt official acts,” stated performing U.S. Lawyer Matthew Podolsky. “Together, Nadine Menendez and the Senator placed their own interests and greed ahead of the interests of the citizens the Senator was elected to serve. Today’s verdict sends the clear message that the power of government officials may not be put up for sale, and that all those who facilitate corruption will be held accountable for their actions.”
Each Nadine and Bob Menendez stated they’re harmless and by no means took any bribes.
Throughout a closing argument Thursday, Nadine Menendez’s lawyer, Barry Coburn, had argued that the proof was inadequate to lead to a conviction.
“These things we’re talking about here are unproven,” he stated, including that the dealings the senator had with the businessmen have been simply what a politician is meant to do for his constituents.
In a rebuttal argument Friday morning, Assistant U.S. Lawyer Daniel Richenthal urged the jury to convict Nadine Menendez, saying they must consider that over $450,000 in money and gold bars value lots of of 1000’s of {dollars} extra that have been discovered by the FBI of their house have been items somewhat than bribes.
“They weren’t gifts,” he stated. “They were bribes.”
He referred to as the proof in opposition to her “consistent and overwhelming” and described her as an “active participant, a critical participant” within the bribery scheme.
Prosecutors accused her of beginning to facilitating bribes to the senator across the time that they started courting, earlier than they married within the fall of 2020.
On the time, she was at risk of dropping her house in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, after lacking almost $20,000 in mortgage funds, trial testimony confirmed. A longtime buddy, Wael Hana, offered money to avoid wasting the house — and prosecutors stated that in return, the senator started serving to Hana protect a enterprise monopoly he had organized with the Egyptian authorities to certify that imported meat met non secular necessities.
Nadine Menendez additionally wanted a brand new automobile after her previous one was destroyed when she struck and killed a person crossing a road. (She didn’t face costs within the crash). Prosecutors stated a businessman, Jose Uribe, gave her a Mercedes-Benz, and in return Bob Menendez used his clout to strain the New Jersey legal professional basic’s workplace to cease investigating a few of Uribe’s associates.
Prosecutor stated more money and gold bribes have been paid to the couple by Fred Daibes, a distinguished actual property developer who prosecutors stated wished the senator to guard him from a prison case he was going through in New Jersey. Prosecutors stated Bob Menendez additionally helped Daibes safe a $95 million funding from a Qatari funding fund.
Born in Lebanon of Armenian descent, Nadine Menendez started courting the senator in early 2018 when she was referred to as Nadine Arslanian. Prosecutors stated she quickly joined a bribery scheme involving three New Jersey businessmen. The couple was married within the fall of 2020.
Bob Menendez, a Democrat whose Senate profession started in 2006, carried out the bribery scheme whereas he held highly effective positions on the influential Senate International Relations Committee. He was compelled from the committee after he was charged within the case.
Nadine and Bob Menendez have been initially imagined to tried collectively, however the trial for Nadine was postponed final 12 months after she was identified with breast most cancers and underwent surgical procedure.
Uribe pleaded responsible and testified in opposition to the others. Hana and Dabies have been convicted together with the senator. Hana has been sentenced to eight years in jail whereas Daibes received seven years behind bars.
