Gold bar Bob Menendez trial judge rules feds can’t use texts related to Egypt aid debates as evidence
A Manhattan federal judge has blocked prosecutors from introducing text messages related to a 2019 debate about aid to Egypt in the trial of Sen. Bob Menendez — exchanges the government has called “critical” to their case.
US District Judge Sidney Stein agreed with the New Jersey Democrat’s defense team Friday that allowing the messages between an Egyptian government official and Menendez co-defendant Wael Hana into evidence would violate the Constitution’s Speech or Debate Clause, which holds that members of Congress cannot be held criminally or civilly liable for actions related to their legislative duties.
Stein also ruled that prosecutors could not introduce another exchange from 2022, in which Menendez’s wife Nadine allegedly forwarded a link to Hana about two military sales to Egypt worth about $2.5 billion, writing, “Bob had to sign off on this.”
The exchanges𒐪 were laid out in a superseding indictment filed by prosecutors in⭕ the Southern District of New York this past March.
On Sept. 9, 2019, authorities said, an Egyptian official messaged Hana to say he had learned that “senator [sic] Menendize [sic] put an [sic] hold on a billion $ of usaid [sic] to Egypt” and asked “Is this true?”
Hana then tried and failed to contact Nadine Menendez before reaching out to another co-defendant, real estate developer Fred Daibes. Daibes apparently got hold of the senator and relayed his r🅠esponse to Hana.
“Less than two minutes later,” the indictment reads, “Hana texted [the Egyptian official] writing that it was not true and ‘he’ [Menendez] did not know anything about the hold on U.S. [sic] aid to Egypt.”
At the time of the exchange, Menendez was the top Democrat on the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the chairmanship of which he resigned following his and Nadine’s initial indictment in September.
Bob Menendez faces 18 federal charges alleging that he and his wife accepted cash, gold bars, a Mercedes and other items in exchange for performing political favors for Daibes, Hana and a third New Jersey businessman, Jose Uribe — who has pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with the investigat💙ion.
Prosecutors also say that Menendez used his position as Foreign Relations Committee chair to unlawfully benefit the governments of both Egypt and Qatar in exchange for money and other perk🍰s.
During a May 21 hearing about the texts, prosecutor Paul Monteleoni told Stein the 2019 messages signaled that the Cairo government was “frantic about not getting their money’s worth,” .
The 2022 text from Nadine, Monteleoni added, was a coded instruction: “You keep the bribes flowing, and he is going to keep giving you what you want on the military aid.”
Stein was skeptical, telling prosecutors: “The core legislative act is clearly the hold or releasing the hold. I don’t think it matters that there was mistaken information here.”
Monteleoni argued, to no avail, that a ruling by Stein to that effect would rule out “some of the core, most critical evidence” related to the foreign agent charges.
Investigators raided the Menendez home in 2022 a𝐆nd claimed to have recovered more than $100,000 worth of gold bars, $480,000 in cash, and more.
The senator has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to all char🌞ges p🔯ending against him.
The trial of Bob Menendez, Daibes and Hana began May 13 and is now entering its third week. A judge agreed to delay the trial of Nadine unt⛄il later this year as she battles Grade 3 breast cancer.
Earlier this month, the senator’s lawyer denied knowledge of the gold bars, insist♑ing 🐈that his wife had stashed them without his knowledge.
Menendez later defended Nadine when confronted by The Post, chiding, “Don’t be such a bloodsucker! She has cancer.”
Bob Menendez has bucked pressure from a chorus of Democrats to resign from his seat, but has declined to seek renomination in✤ t🌳he June 4 primary.
However, the 70-year-old is keeping the door open to an independent re-election bid and is even reportedly collecting signatures to land on the ballot.
For that to happen, Menendez will need to attain 800 signatures by primary day. Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ) is all but certain to be the Democrats’ nominee to replace him.
