
In the federal bribery trial of Senator Bob Menendez, the defense rested its case on Wednesday without having him take the stand.
After leaving the New York courthouse, Menendez, D-N.J., gave a quick interview to media in which he gave his reasoning for declining to testify.
He declared, “In my view, the government has not proven every element of this case,” he added that he expected the jury to find him not guilty and that he did not think testifying made sense.
We anticipate closing disputes the following week.
In 2022, during a search of Menendez’s residence, hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and gold bars allegedly paid as bribes were discovered by the prosecution. The indictment states that “A large portion was concealed in clothes, closets, and a safe, and was put into envelopes.”
They added that three businesses paid the payments between 2018 and 2022 in exchange for Menendez’s official acts while serving as a senator.
Wael Hana and Fred Daibes, the other two businessmen, are on trial alongside Menendez, while Jose Uribe entered a guilty plea and consented to testify during the trial as part of an agreement with the prosecution. Nadine Menendez, Menendez’s spouse, is also charged in this case. Due to her recovery from breast cancer surgery, her trial has been postponed.
Menendez has entered a not-guilty plea to accusations of misconduct, which include bribery, representing Egypt as a foreign agent, and obstruction of justice. Both his spouse and the other two businessmen have entered not-guilty pleas.
Not long after being charged in September, he resigned from his position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but he has refused to step down as requested by other Democrats.
Since 2006, Menendez has been a member of the Senate. He submitted his independent reelection petition last month and will likely face Republican Curtis Bashaw in November as well as Democratic nominee Rep. Andy Kim, who won the Democratic Senate primary.