(RepublicanNews.org) – Prosecutors in the trial of Sen. Bob Menendez (D – NJ) are seeking to prove his alleged corruption in part with a series of emails linking him, his wife, a co-defendant, and officials within the Egyptian government.
In one such exchange, a political staffer makes inquiries as to how many Americans were working in the American embassy in Egypt. The staffer initially requests that his correspondent refrain from asking the purpose of the question, but eventually says that “Bob” – i.e. Sen. Menendez – wanted the information. Prosecutors revealed that Menendez later sent the answer to Nadine Arslanian, his then-girlfriend. Arslanian, now Menendez’s wife, forwarded the information to Wael Hana, a New Jersey businessman charged as co-defendant in the case. Hana then sent the answer to an employee of the Egyptian government.
The long chain of correspondence is just one of many emails presented to the court by the prosecution which is working to paint a picture of a senator knowingly abusing his position for financial gain. Menendez has maintained his innocence throughout, as have Arslanian and Hana. Hana is accused of paying the couple various bribes over the course of several years, sometimes with cash payments and other times with gold bars or luxury goods, including a Mercedez Benz.
Menendez is accused of taking bribes in exchange for treating the Egyptian government favorably in his role as an American lawmaker, with his now-wife accused of acting as a sort of gatekeeper to the senator. Text messages shown to the court feature Arslanian instructing Menendez how to refer to Egypt in a Washington D.C. speech. She prompted him to say that Cairo was moving in “the right direction” and to emphasize its relationship with the International Monetary Fund.
As well as working to promote a foreign government, Menendez is accused of performing various other favors for Hana and two other New Jersey businessmen accused of involvement in the scheme. These favors included using his power to make an unwanted lawsuit disappear and helping Hana win a lucrative Halal meat contract with Egypt.
Prosecutors have pointed to greed and financial desperation as the main motives, showing evidence that in 2019, Arslanian was unable to pay her mortgage and nearly lost her home. At the time, the couple appeared to be devoted to each other, with text messages peppered with terms of endearment and declarations of love. Now, Menendez claims that he had no idea what his wife was up to and accuses her of keeping him out of the loop with regard to financial arrangements.
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