New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez (D) was convicted of bribery, fraud, and extortion in New York’s Southern District Court yesterday, prompting calls for his immediate resignation. The three-term senator was found guilty on all 16 felony counts and could face decades in prison at his sentencing scheduled for Oct. 29.
The 70-year-old and two businessmen were found guilty of a bribery scheme in which Menendez—the former head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee—received payments in gold and cash to influence New Jersey criminal investigations and provide intel to Egyptian officials. The senator’s wife, Nadine, faces similar charges in a trial that was indefinitely postponed yesterday amid her breast cancer treatment.
Menendez is seeking a fourth six-year term in the US Senate after announcing last month he would run as an independent. Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and New Jersey’s governor both called for Menendez to step down in light of the verdict.
