Topline
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and his wife were hit with another superseding indictment from a federal court in New York on Tuesday that alleges obstruction of justice, a new charge on top of the bribery charges the pair already face.
Key Facts
Menendez and his wife, Nadine Menendez, face obstruction of justice charges in the new 18-count indictment, which argues the pair made their lawyers make “false and misleading statements” to prosecutors about loan and car payments that prosecutors allege were actually bribes.
The new charges come on top of charges alleging Menendez acted as a foreign agent of the Egyptian government and criminal bribery charges for allegedly maintaining a “corrupt relationship” with three New Jersey businessmen.
Menendez has pleaded not guilty to the previous charges against him, though one of the businessmen and co-defendants in the bribery case pleaded guilty last week to seven counts, including conspiracy to commit bribery.
Tuesday’s indictment also brings additional charges against Wael Hana and Fred Daibes, who were also allegedly involved in the bribery scheme and have also pleaded not guilty not to prior charges.
Forbes has reached out to a representative for Menendez.
Crucial Quote
“In truth and in fact, and as Menendez well knew, Menendez has learned of both the mortgage company payment and the car payments prior to 2022, and they were not loans, but bribe payments,” the indictment reads, referring to Menendez’s former lawyers saying he had been previously unaware of the payments.
What We Don’t Know
What the new charges mean for Menendez’s trial, which is currently scheduled for May 6.
Key Background
Last September Menendez and his wife were indicted and charged with three counts each for conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right and conspiracy to commit honest services fraud. In October, Menendez was hit with the first superseding indictment in the case that accused him of acting as a foreign agent. Then, in January, Menendez faced another superseding indictment that alleged he made positive comments about Qatar in exchange for money given to a New Jersey business and that he connected a member of the Qatari royal family with Fred Daibes, a New Jersey developer and one of the co-defendants from the original indictment. Menendez has maintained innocence, saying after the original indictment we would not leave office—though he did temporarily step down from his role as the chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee after the September charges were brought.
