New York – Former U.S. Senator Bob Menendez The wife told the judge that her husband was “not the man I thought I was” and was sentenced Thursday to 4.5 years in prison for selling powerful New Jersey politicians in exchange for bribes in cash, gold bars and a luxury car.
US District Judge Sidney H. Stein Sentenced Nadine MenendezAged 58, in April, she was convicted between 2018 and 2023, with her husband, former Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, assisting with various corruption programs, some involving assistance. Egyptian Government.
When she spoke to the judge shortly before she was sentenced, she cried Nadine Menendez Describes her husband as a manipulative liar.
“I took my life in his hands, and he tied me in my hands like a puppet,” she said. “Monford has been closed. I now know that he is not my savior. He is not the man I thought he is.”
Stan told the defendant that she was not the person portrayed during the trial of her husband and two New Jersey businessmen last year, when the judge said she was portrayed as “like manipulative, eager to make money and the real power behind the plot.”
But he said she was also not an “innocent observer of what was happening around her” because she was portrayed by lawyers at the trial.
“You know what you’re doing. Your character has a purpose,” he said.
When she talks Nadine Menendez Partly blaming her husband, saying she was deceived by his strength and figure, she felt compelled to do whatever he wanted, such as making a phone call or meeting some people.
“I would never imagine his ranking putting me in this position,” she said, admitting that in retrospect, she was an adult woman who should know better.
Before the hearing, Bob Menendez A letter was submitted to the judge saying he regretted that he did not fully predict the lawyer’s evaluation of his wife during the trial and ended the debate.
“suggestion Nadin It is hungry for money or financial need, so it is wrong to ask for help from others,” he wrote.
In addition to imprisonment, Stein was sentenced Nadine Menendez By three years the supervision will be released. He said he gave her leniency in part because of her hard childhood in Lebanon, her abusive romantic partner, health status and age.
Prison tenure is important for general deterrence purposes, Stan said: “People have to understand the consequences.”
Nadine Menendez There is no need to surrender to prison until next summer. Stein set the report date to July 10 to accommodate the defense request, which allowed her to freely complete the necessary medical procedures. Federal prosecutors do not object to the request.
Prosecutors have requested at least seven years in prison.
Her attorney, Sarah Krissoff, asked her to be in jail for only one year on the grounds that she had difficulty recovering from breast cancer, which was diagnosed before last year’s trial, when she was to be tried with her husband. She was eventually tried alone.
Bob Menendez71, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for alleged bribery, extortion and acting as an agent Egyptian Government.
The prosecutor said Nadine Menendez Playing an important and crucial role in her husband’s crimes, acting as an intermediary between the senator and three New Jersey businessmen who actually lined up his coat pockets for tens of thousands of dollars in cash in exchange for his political influence.
In a 2022 FBI raid on the couple’s New Jersey home, investigators found $480,000 in cash, an estimated $150,000 worth of gold bars and a luxury convertible in the garage.
Prosecutors said the senator met with Egyptian intelligence officials and accelerated the country’s access to U.S. military aid as part of a complex effort to help his bribery colleagues, one of whom had a commercial lawsuit with his bribery colleagues. Egyptian Government.
