Taken from UNIVISIÓN
Senator Bob Menendez and his wife, Nadine Menendez, were accused of obstruction of justice in a new 18-count indictment that was made public this Tuesday and that adds to the corruption charges that the New Democrat already faces. Sweater.
Among the new charges against the couple are conspiracy, obstruction of justice, acting by a public official as a foreign agent, bribery, extortion and wire fraud. The new charges are contained in a redrafted indictment against the Democrat in federal court in Manhattan.
The Justice Department filed three corruption charges against Menéndez in September last year linked to an alleged bribery scheme in exchange for using his political power as a senator to help the governments of Egypt and Qatar, and three New Jersey businessmen.
The previous indictment alleges that the couple conspired with the businessmen to accept bribes in exchange for the senator’s help in projects pursued by the businessmen. The couple has pleaded not guilty, along with two of the businessmen. The trial is scheduled for May.
Another businessman, José Uribe, involved in the case pleaded guilty to the charges last week and agreed to testify in the trial against the others.
Uribe, a former insurance broker, had been accused of providing the senator’s wife, Nadine Menendez, with a Mercedes-Benz in exchange for the Democratic politician’s efforts to intercede on his behalf in an insurance fraud investigation in New Jersey.
Following his arrest in the fall, Menéndez, 70, was forced to resign as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but said he would not resign from Congress.
According to the accusation, among the bribes that Menéndez and his wife received were also gold bars and cash.
Menendez pleaded not guilty to previous charges of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from businessmen to hinder police investigations they faced and illegally acting as an agent of the Egyptian government.
#Senator #Bob #Menendez #wife #accused #obstruction #justice
