The wife of New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez has confided in a friend that she believes he will go to prison because he lacks the money to pay for legal representation, The Post has learned.
The Democrat’s second wife, Nadine Arslanian, could face up to 45 years in prison if she is found guilty of bribery and corruption charges in a July trial.
Her lawyer withdrew the case earlier this month after successfully getting her trial postponed until July due to her “serious medical condition,” and she is now without legal representation. .
Now, members of her social circle have told The Post that Arslanian, a mother of two from her first marriage, was convicted after a trial in July over concerns about cash. He said he expected to be jailed.
Her husband (who obscenely refers to her cleavage as “Bubbles”) has a legal defense fund that has already been used to pay expert witnesses in his case and cover some legal costs. She worries it won’t come close to covering the final bill.
She will face a jury in federal court in Manhattan after her husband’s separate trial begins on May 6, in which his lawyers say he could “convict” his wife. claims.
However, the couple remains married and live together in a house in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.
The $1.2 million home, where the FBI found piles of cash and gold bars when it was raided, is where Mr. Menendez, Mr. Arslanian and three New Jersey businessmen sold their power. , was indicted on charges of irregular conspiracy to secretly conspire on behalf of a foreign national. Governments of Egypt and Qatar.
According to a federal indictment, the couple is accused of trading in stolen goods and a Mercedes convertible for political favor.
Menendez, 70, Arslanian, 57, and co-accused Fred Dybes and Wael Hanna have strongly denied all charges, but only one of the five One man, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors in Manhattan. .
On Tuesday, a bombshell confidential filing was released by Mr Menedez’s defense team in which he said his evidence could “convict Nadine” if he took the stand.
Kim DePaola, a former cast member of “The Real Housewives of New Jersey,” was among those in the circle who heard about Arslanian’s horror, telling the Post:
De Paola knew Arslanian from Kim D’s parties and Posh fashion shows at De Paola’s now-closed boutique in Allendale, N.J., and had met Arslanian at a ballroom in North Jersey. Few people sympathize with the couple, or Menendez said they have a tingling sense of wonder. It’s his wife’s fault.
“Everyone despises Menendez,” DePaolo said. “And a man who throws his wife under the bus does not deserve any respect.
“In New Jersey, men support women. He didn’t seem to know what was going on! To throw a woman under the bus like that was terrible.”
De Paola, host of the podcast “Get Real with Kim D” and author of the upcoming memoir “My Life with the Big Boys,” said Arslanian was He said he was always looking for the “next best thing” when it came to love. life.
She divorced her first husband, Rafi Arslanian, in 2005 and later dated Douglas Anton, a New Jersey lawyer who represented singer R. Kelly in his 2021 sex trafficking trial.
“When she came to my event, she had her chest down to her knees,” DePaolo said.
“We all looked at her and said, ‘What the heck?’ She was always trying to be provocative. She’s just so trash. And that’s how she gets guys I think I caught it.”
De Paula likened the couple to Depression-era bandits Bonnie and Clyde, saying they were both obsessed with a lavish lifestyle.
“This is what happens in life when you’re chasing a Louis Vuitton bag and something like this comes out,” she said. “What do you expect?”
Danny Onorato, a Washington, D.C., attorney representing Arslanian, declined comment Thursday. Robert Raskin, an attorney representing Menendez, did not respond to a request for comment.
Arslanyan is involved in a love triangle with Anton and Menendez, which was first revealed by the Post.
De Paola said Arslanian was bragging about the senator even though people knew she was dating Anton.
“I was sitting in the salon and I heard the girls talking about how Nadine came in and told everyone that she was in love and that he was a senator,” DePaola said. said, adding that he had informed his former lawyer, Anton, of the news.
But another close friend of Arslanian, ex-gangster John Allite, an author and podcast host, said of her: She is completely isolated in her married life. ”
Alite told the Post she has not heard from her former friend since she married the senator.
In addition to the federal charges, Arslanian’s other possible legal troubles include the December 2018 killing of a man in his Mercedes in Bogotá, New Jersey.
Last year, New Jersey’s attorney general announced a new investigation into the death and its aftermath.
She called a friend for help before calling 911, but may have called the number after police arrived and given the wrong location of the crash that killed Bogotá resident Richard Koop. .
Dashcam footage and 911 recordings do not show her asking about the victim’s whereabouts, but they do show her refusing to search her cell phone.
Former Hackensack Police Chief Michael Moldaga came to the scene at the friend’s request and helped her leave. She was not given a field sobriety test and she was not charged with any wrongdoing.
But Arslanian did not hesitate to call 911 repeatedly from his home, according to documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. Disclosed by NorthJersey.com.
In the past few years, she has called or visited the Englewood Cliffs Police Department 18 times, complaining of a suspicious vehicle outside her home, and repeated calls to her cell phone from a blocked number. They complained that their neighbors were dumping animal waste on their suburban property. Complaints.
Menendez called police to his home once again in September 2020, a month before his wedding, to report a suspicious car parked near his driveway.
The senator told police that the driver was “a medium-skinned, dark-haired male who appeared to be of Arabian descent,” NorthJersey.com reported.
“I don’t blame her for being anxious right now because I know what she’s going through,” a woman who lives in the Englewood Cliffs neighborhood told The Post on Wednesday. .
“But before all this, look at all the craziness her first husband dumped on her.
“I don’t know if she has OCD or anxiety, but I could see someone who had no money, had anxiety, and was going through a bad divorce. ”
Additional reporting by Reuven Fenton
