After officials found gold bars and significant sums of money at his home, a federal judge handed former US Senator Robert Menendez a sentence of 11 years in jail for corruption.
Convicted of extortion, obstruction of justice, and bribing in trade for favors to businesspeople with links to Egypt and Qatar, the 71-year-old Democrat from New Jersey stands Methodoserangingfc helping career-related customers in Egypt and Qatar. Menendez has let known his plan to challenge the ruling.
&Let’s say midway along the way… you were off track,” noted District Court Judge Sidney Stein as he handed down the sentence. “Working for the public good meant you were working for your own good.”
Former chair of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, Menendez had promised to contest the July 2024 judgment. Before his sentencing, he begged the judge for clemency.
” For Anthony’s sake—not mine—I am going to plea for mercy,” Menendez said brokenly, alluding to his autistic son.
Menendez’s character was vouched for by multiple acquaintances in letters sent to the court.
Author Donald Scarinci wrote, “Bob inspired many people—myself included—with hope that one can change the world.
Although his lawyer Adam Fee recognized Menendez’s long public service history, he regretted that “in spite of his years of work, he is now more broadly known as ‘gold bar Bob.'”
Conviction and Charges
Menendez was found guilty of several offenses, including conspiracy to commit bribery and working as a foreign agent throughout his terms.
Menendez kept claiming his innocence after his condemnation, saying, “I have always been merely a patriot for my nation and for my country. I have never in my life been a foreign agent.”
He confirmed his intention to appeal on Wednesday, rejecting the politically charged case against him.
“President Trump is correct. This is a political one and it is deeply tainted. President Trump cleaning up the cesspool and restoring honour to the system will be his hope.
Immediately following the hearing, he was not taken into police custody.
Agents found about $500,000 in cash stashed in many places, gold bars valued at around $150,000, and a luxury Mercedes-Benz convertible during an FBI sweep at Menendez’s New Jersey home.
As she goes treatment for breast cancer, his wife Nadine Menendez is set to be tried individually since she too is facing charges.
Along with Egyptian-American entrepreneur Wael Hana and real estate developer Fred Daibes, both also sent to prison, Menendez was found guilty. Insurance broker Jose Uribe, still another associate, confessed in March to bribery counts and assisted with inquiries.
Menendez tried to affect the selection of New Jersey’s head prosecutor to stop inquiries into Daibes and Uribe, the government claimed. He was also charged with receiving bribes to help his friends as well as the Egyptian government, including helping Hana to keep a monopoly on US halal food exports to Egypt using his political sway.
Menendez’s defense sought a sentence of not more than eight years whereas the prosecution had asked for a 15-year term.
Regarding the sentences handed today, which are the result of a serious abuse of power at the highest levels, prosecutor Danielle Sassoon calls it an “egregious abuse of power.”