OAN’s Brooke Mallory
10:48am – Thursday, May 16, 2024
Sen. Bob Menendez announced that he is battling breast cancer, a day after his wife Nadine Menendez accused him of being behind bribery allegations.
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“As a result of constant media interviews and reporters following my wife, my wife has asked me to disclose her medical condition,” Menendez (DN.J.) said Thursday. She said: “Nadine has grade 3 breast cancer and will need a mastectomy.”
“Of course we are concerned about the severity and progression of the disease,” he continued. “She will require follow-up surgery and possibly radiation therapy. We hope and pray for the best outcome.”
In September 2023, Menendez, his spouse, and three men from New Jersey (Wael Hana, Fred Dybes, and Jose Uribe) were indicted on charges of conspiracy. The pair allegedly received payment for a Mercedes convertible, gold bars and gold bullion. He received hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash in exchange for Menendez’s political influence.
Prosecutors claim the lawmaker’s actions later benefited the governments of Qatar and Egypt. The 70-year-old Democrat from New Jersey is charged with 16 federal crimes, including extortion, bribery, acting as a foreign agent and obstruction of justice.
He has entered a not guilty plea and refutes any wrongdoing.
In addition to Mr. Menendez, his attorney argued in opening arguments Wednesday that his wife was actually responsible for receiving the cash payments and gold bars. He claimed that she had hidden these transactions from him.
Jurors were told by Menendez’s lawyer, Abi Weitzman, that the senator had “no knowledge” of the gold bars and cash found at his New Jersey home in June 2022.
He hid this fact, claiming that it was his wife who received the lavish bribes. She then acted as a messenger for senators, co-defendants and Egyptian authorities, Menendez claimed.
Weitzman also told the jury that Mrs. Menendez allegedly kept the gold in her closet and lived separately from her spouse.
In a bizarre twist, the lawyer showed jurors a picture of a character from the cartoon “Finding Waldo” and asked them to consider the question “Where’s Bob?” They were watching the trial.
Earlier this year, Mrs. Menendez sought a separate trial for her husband and the New Jersey businessmen, citing in court documents a serious medical condition that turned out to be breast cancer. She is scheduled to go to trial this summer.
“Mr. Menendez is on trial along with real estate developer Mr. Dybes and businessman Mr. Hana. They also maintain their innocence. The proceedings are expected to last six to seven weeks.” independent person report.
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