Jury choice begins in trial accusing high Democrat of accepting bribes and performing as unregistered international agent.
Jury choice has begun within the corruption trial of Bob Menendez, a high United States senator who’s accused of accepting bribes in alternate for a spread of favours and performing as an unregistered agent of the Egyptian authorities.
Menendez, 70, faces 16 prison expenses and is being tried alongside two New Jersey businessmen in Manhattan federal court docket.
Menendez sat along with his attorneys on Monday and listened as Choose Sidney H Stein informed a number of dozen potential jurors in regards to the expenses.
The choose informed them the “sitting US senator from the state of New Jersey” had been charged in a conspiracy through which he allegedly “agreed to simply accept bribes and accepted bribes”.
Menendez’s spouse, Nadine, has additionally been charged however can be tried individually. All 4 defendants have pleaded not responsible.
In September, prosecutors accused Menendez and his spouse of accepting money, gold bars and a Mercedes-Benz convertible in alternate for the senator wielding his political affect in New Jersey and serving to the governments of Egypt and Qatar.
Authorities mentioned Menendez promised to assist Egypt receive arms gross sales and different navy assist, and helped co-defendant Wael Hana, an Egyptian-American businessman, receive a profitable monopoly on the certification of halal meat exports to Egypt.
Prosecutors additionally mentioned Menendez tried to assist his different co-defendant, outstanding New Jersey developer Fred Daibes, receive thousands and thousands of {dollars} from a Qatari funding fund, and sought to disrupt a federal prison case in opposition to Daibes in New Jersey.
A lot of the money obtained by the couple was stuffed inside clothes at their residence, prosecutors mentioned.
A couple of weeks after the preliminary indictment was unsealed, US authorities in October additionally charged Menendez – who beforehand chaired the influential Senate International Affairs Committee – with serving as an unregistered agent of Egypt.
Chatting with reporters in late September, Menendez mentioned he was assured he can be exonerated within the case and would proceed his political profession.
“I firmly consider that when all of the information are introduced, not solely will I be exonerated, however I nonetheless can be New Jersey’s senior senator,” he mentioned.
He additionally sought to defend his file on Egypt.
“All through my 30 years within the Home of Representatives and the Senate, I’ve at all times labored to carry accountable these international locations together with Egypt for human rights abuses, the repression of its citizenry, civil society, and extra,” he informed reporters on the time.
Menendez is up for re-election in November and has mentioned he would possibly run as an impartial if he’s exonerated within the prison case.
However current polls present he’s deeply unpopular amongst New Jersey voters and plenty of Democratic Celebration senators, together with New Jersey’s Cory Booker, have known as for him to resign.
Fewer than one in six voters polled in March by Monmouth College and Emerson School Polling/PIX11/The Hill mentioned they accepted of Menendez’s job efficiency. Even fewer mentioned they might vote for him as an impartial.
That is Menendez’s second prison trial: In 2017, a New Jersey federal choose declared a mistrial after jurors deadlocked on whether or not he broke the legislation by offering assist to a rich ophthalmologist in alternate for lavish presents and political contributions.
