NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., is scheduled to report to federal prison on Tuesday for an 11-year sentence after being convicted for a bribery and corruption scheme that even his lawyer admitted earned him the nickname “Gold Bar Bob.”
Though he maintains his innocence, Menendez was convicted on all 16 counts last July. At trial, federal prosecutors argued that the longtime senator accepted bribes of gold bars, hundreds of thousands in cash and other luxury items from three New Jersey businessmen in exchange for favors that benefited the trio, as well as the governments of Egypt and Qatar.
Menendez, 71, spent the last day before reporting to the federal prison in eastern Pennsylvania with his wife, Nadine, who was also convicted in the bribery scheme and is set to be sentenced in September. The couple were spotted together Monday walking into a credit union in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., according to photos obtained by the New York Post.
DISGRACED EX-SEN. BOB MENENDEZ SENTENCED TO 11 YEARS IN BRIBERY CASE
In court papers last month, Menendez’s lawyers revealed that he is expected to be housed at a facility in eastern Pennsylvania that has both a medium-security prison and a minimum-security prison camp. Given the white-collar nature of his crimes, it is likely he will end up in the camp, according to the Associated Press.
The prison, the Federal Correctional Institution, Schuylkill, is about 118 miles west of New York City. It is home to about 1,200 inmates, including ex-New York City organized crime boss James Coonan and former gas station owner Gurmeet Singh Dhinsa, whom the New York Post dubbed “Gas-Station Gotti” for his ruthless, violent ways.
Last week, a federal appeals court rejected Menendez’s last-ditch effort to remain free on bail while he fights to get his bribery conviction overturned. A three-judge panel on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied his bail motion.
Pleading for leniency, Menendez told a judge at his sentencing in January: “I am far from a perfect man. I have made more than my share of mistakes and bad decisions. I’ve done far more good than bad.”
Menendez appeared to reference Republican President Donald Trump’s claims of a weaponized justice system when speaking to media after that hearing.
“This process is political, and it’s corrupted to the core. I hope President Trump cleans up the cesspool and restores the integrity to the system,” Menendez told reporters at the time.
DEMOCRATIC SEN. BOB MENENDEZ GUILTY ON ALL CHARGES IN FEDERAL CORRUPTION TRIAL
At his January sentencing, Menendez’s lawyers described how the son of Cuban immigrants emerged from poverty to become “the epitome of the American Dream” — rising from mayor of Union City, New Jersey, to decades in Congress — before his conviction “rendered him a national punchline.”
“Despite his decades of service, he is now known more widely as Gold Bar Bob,” defense lawyer Adam Fee told the judge.
Menendez, who once served as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, resigned his seat a month after his conviction. He had been in the Senate since 2006.
In a 2022 raid of Menendez’s home, the FBI uncovered approximately $480,000 in cash and gold bars valued at about $150,000 hidden in clothing, shoes, bags and boxes in various locations. A luxury Mercedes-Benz convertible was also at the house.
Prosecutors pointed to payments allegedly made through a sham consulting firm and alleged that Menendez used his position to help Egypt secure $300 million in U.S. military aid, influence U.S. policy in Egypt and Qatar and prevent criminal probes into his associates, Wael Hana, Fred Daibes and Jose Uribe. Uribe testified against his co-defendants.
Menendez was convicted of counts including bribery, extortion, wire fraud, obstruction of justice, acting as a foreign agent for Egypt and multiple conspiracy charges.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Read the full article here
