Trial of Nadine Menendez, wife of Bob Menendez, underway with opening statements
Nadine Menendez, the wife of convicted former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, faced opening statements Monday in her federal bribery trial in New York City.
The proceedings were delayed for nearly two hours, with the judge stressing how important it is for jurors to arrive on time and emphasizing court cannot start until everyone is present. He apologized for his tone but said he was frustrated by the delay.
Like her husband was previously, Nadine Menendez, 58, is accused of taking part in a years-long bribery scheme and accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange for political favors that benefitted themselves and the Egyptian government. The charges she faces include bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right.
Nadine Menendez was originally scheduled to stand trial last year alongside her 71-year-old husband, but her case was delayed while she underwent breast cancer treatment. She has pleaded not guilty to 15 charges.
Bob Menendez was eventually sentenced to 11 years in prison in the case and resigned his longtime seat in the Senate. There was no sign of him in court on Monday, but the judge has allowed him to stay out so he can provide emotional support for his wife during her trial. He is due to surrender on June 6. His attorneys have vowed to appeal.
Opening statements from the prosecution and defense
Nadine Menendez walked into federal court alone and kept her facemask on while inside at the defense table.
Prosecutors told jurors "she did the dirty work." It is alleged that from 2018-2022 she and then-Sen. Menendez "engaged in a corrupt relationship with three New Jersey associates and businessmen."
Wael Hana, originally from Egypt, was sentenced to more than eight years in prison in the case, while Fred Daibes was sentenced to seven years. Jose Uribe took a plea deal and is awaiting sentencing.
Prosecutors say Nadine Menendez and the senator, her boyfriend at the time, took thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for his power to protect the men, enrich them, and to benefit the government of Egypt, like giving that country sensitive information.
Those bribes included cash, $100,000 in gold bars, payments toward a home mortgage, a luxury car, compensation for a low-to-no-show job, and other things. Sen. Menendez said during his trial that the gold belonged to his wife and the cash stemmed from a habit of hoarding money after his parents fled Cuba in the 1950s.
In their opening statement, prosecutors told jurors that Nadine Menendez was the go-between, that she communicated with bribe payers, passed messages to the senator, and collected most of the bribes, "all in exchange for their promises to use his power as a senator."
"They were partners in crime, partners in corruption and partners in greed," prosecutors added.
The defense told jurors that prosecutors had a lot of "nefarious characterizations" that they anticipate the evidence will show are "grossly inaccurate."
They added they believe there will be an "absolute, utter failure of proof in this case with respect to knowledge and intent."
The first witness called to the stand Monday, the FBI special agent leading the search of the couple's house, testified they kept a low profile because it was the home of a sitting U.S. senator, adding 52 items were seized.
