Free Republic

Several gold bars discovered by federal agents in Democratic New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez's residence as part of a high-profile bribery investigation can be traced to a violent robbery a decade ago. According to a sprawling indictment unsealed by federal prosecutors in September, Menendez and his wife allegedly played a role in a years-long bribery scheme that involved the Egyptian government and local businessmen including Fred Daibes, a wealthy New Jersey real estate developer. Prosecutors revealed they retrieved multiple gold bars from Menendez's home which were allegedly used as payment in the scheme. At least four of the gold bars...

A businessman told police that he was the victim of a robbery in 2013 and asked them to recover the 22 stolen gold bars. Four bars were found a decade later in Menendez's home. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ At least four gold bars found in the FBI search of Sen. Bob Menendez’s home had been directly linked to a New Jersey businessman now accused of bribing Menendez, the state’s senior senator, Bergen County prosecutor’s records from a 2013 robbery case show. The businessman, Fred Daibes, reported to police that he was the victim of an armed robbery in 2013, and he asked police...

In late 2020, Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) met with Philip Sellinger, a private practice lawyer and former fundraiser for the senator, to assess his potential fit as the next U.S. attorney for the state of New Jersey - and to discuss one case in particular. If appointed, Sellinger would assume control of one of the largest prosecutor’s offices in the country, a post that comes with the power to bust mob bosses and go after corrupt public officials. But Menendez, federal prosecutors say, was fixated on a less consequential matter: ensuring the future prosecutor would act sympathetically toward a friend...

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) on Saturday became the first Democratic senator to call for the resignation of colleague Bob Menendez (D-NJ). In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Fetterman wrote that while Menendez is "entitled to the presumption of innocence" in the federal corruption case against him, he "cannot continue to wield influence over national policy, especially given the serious and specific nature of the allegations. "I hope he chooses an honorable exit and focuses on his trial," Fetterman added. Menendez was indicted Friday on charges including conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and...