US Senator Bob Menendez receives 11-year prison sentence

BBC.com

Former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez has been sentenced to 11 years in prison, following his conviction on bribery and corruption charges.
Last July, a jury found Menendez guilty on 16 counts for accepting gifts, including gold bars, cash and a Mercedes-Benz, in exchange for helping foreign governments.
Before receiving his sentence, Menendez cried while addressing the courtroom.
The New Jersey senator, who used to lead the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, resigned from the upper chamber in August.
In exchange for the bribes, prosecutors said Menendez helped secure millions of dollars in US aid for Egypt.

NEGATIVE

After being found guilty of bribery and corruption, former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez was given an 11-year prison sentence.

Menendez was convicted by a jury last July on 16 counts of accepting gifts in exchange for aiding foreign governments, including cash, gold bars, and a Mercedes-Benz.

Due to the “rare gravity” of the former senator’s offenses, prosecutors were requesting a minimum of 15 years in prison.

A reduced sentence combined with community service was what Menendez’s 71-year-old attorneys had demanded.

Before imposing Menendez’s sentence, US Judge Sidney Stein reportedly said, “Somewhere along the way, you became, I’m sorry to say, a corrupt politician,” according to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.

Menendez sobbed as he addressed the courtroom prior to being sentenced.

“Other than family, I have lost everything I ever cared about,” he said, court reporters reported. “I am punished every single day that I am awake. “.

He then urged the judge to “use the mercy of a lifetime of duty to temper your sword of justice.”.

Behind their father, in court, were Menendez’s daughter, MSNBC anchor Alicia Menendez, and son, Democratic congressman Rob Menendez.

Two of Menendez’s co-conspirators in the case received sentencing earlier Wednesday.

Prosecutors say that Fred Daibes, a real estate developer in New Jersey, gave the senator cash and gold. He was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined $1.75 million (£1.4 million).

Prosecutors say Wael Hana, an Egyptian-American businessman, mediated a deal between Menendez and the Egyptian government. Hana was sentenced to more than eight years in prison and fined $1.25 million.

Menendez has stated that he intends to appeal the guilty verdict and has denied any wrongdoing on numerous occasions.

The senator from New Jersey, who was the head of the influential Senate Foreign Relations Committee, left the upper house in August.

Jurors saw evidence that Menendez accepted gifts, including gold bars valued at over $100,000 and more than $480,000 in cash, discovered by FBI agents inside Menendez’s home during the nine-week trial, which resulted in a guilty verdict.

Prosecutors said Menendez helped secure millions of dollars in U.S. aid for Egypt in exchange for the bribes.

Since prosecutors could not demonstrate that Menendez did anything as a result of the bribes, his attorneys contended that the gifts did not amount to bribes.

In addition, the former senator was found guilty of attempting to sway criminal investigations into his two co-defendants, Daibes and Hana.

Jose Uribe, a third businessman implicated in the case, entered a guilty plea and is anticipated to be sentenced later this year. He provided testimony during the trial against Menendez.

The former senator’s wife, Nadine Menendez, has also been charged with being involved in the plot by facilitating bribes and messages between the three men and Egyptian authorities.

Her trial will start in March after being postponed to allow her to receive treatment for breast cancer. Her plea is not guilty.

scroll to top