Thursday, January 30, 2025 - Former US 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.
Prosecutors were seeking at least a 15-year sentence, citing
in court documents the "rare gravity" of the ex-senator's crimes.
Lawyers for Menendez, 71, had called for a shorter sentence
paired with community service.
"Somewhere along the way, you became, I'm sorry to say,
a corrupt politician," US Judge Sidney Stein said before handing down
Menendez's sentence, according to CBS News, the BBC's US partner.
Before receiving his sentence, Menendez cried while
addressing the courtroom.
"Other than family, I have lost everything I ever cared
about," he said, according to court reporters. "Every day I'm awake
is a punishment."
He then asked the judge "to temper your sword of
justice with the mercy of a lifetime of duty".
Menendez's son, Rob Menendez, a Democratic congressman, and
his daughter, MSNBC anchor Alicia Menendez, were seated in court behind their
father.
Earlier on Wednesday, two of Menendez's co-conspirators were
sentenced in the case.
Fred Daibes, a New Jersey real estate developer who
prosecutors say delivered gold and cash to the senator, was given a sentence of
seven years in prison and fined $1.75m (£1.4m).
Wael Hana, an Egyptian-American businessman, who prosecutors
say brokered a deal between Menendez and the Egyptian government, received more
than eight years in prison and was fined $1.25m.
Menendez has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and has said he
plans to appeal the guilty verdict.
The New Jersey senator, who used to lead the powerful Senate
Foreign Relations Committee, resigned from the upper chamber in August.
The guilty verdict came after a nine-week trial, during
which jurors saw evidence that Menendez accepted gifts including gold bars
worth over $100,000 and more than $480,000 in cash, found by FBI agents inside
Menendez's home.
In exchange for the bribes, prosecutors said Menendez helped
secure millions of dollars in US aid for Egypt.
His lawyers argued the gifts did not qualify as bribes,
saying prosecutors failed to prove Menendez took any actions as a result of the
bribes.
The former senator was also convicted for trying to
influence criminal probes involving his two co-defendants, Hana and Daibes.
A third businessman involved in the case, Jose Uribe, has
pleaded guilty and is expected to be sentenced later this year. He testified
against Menendez during the trial.
Nadine Menendez, the ex-senator's wife, has also been
accused of acting as a participant in the scheme by shuttling messages and
bribes between the three men and Egyptian officials.
Her trial was delayed so she could undergo breast cancer
treatment and will begin in March. She has pleaded not guilty.
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