Second day of jury deliberations underway in Sen. Bob Menendez’s bribery trial

NEW YORK (AP) — Jury deliberations resumed Monday in the bribery trial of Sen. Bob Menendez in New York City.

A jury that began deliberations on Friday with three hours of work resumed its discussions in the morning in Manhattan federal court. The corruption trial for the New Jersey Democrat is in its 10th week.

Menendez, 70, has denied charges that he engaged in a bribery scheme from 2018 to 2023 to benefit three New Jersey businessman, including by serving as a foreign agent for the government of Egypt.

He and two businessmen who allegedly paid him bribes of gold and cash have pleaded not guilty.

As he left the courthouse on Friday, Menendez told reporters, “I have faith in God and in the jury.”

Last week, lawyers spent more than 15 hours delivering closing arguments as they encouraged the jury to carefully review hundreds of exhibits and hours of testimony.

Prosecutors put a heavy emphasis in their closing arguments on nearly $150,000 of gold bars and over $480,000 in cash seized from the Menendez home during a 2022 FBI raid. They say the valuables were bribe proceeds, along with a Mercedes-Benz convertible found in the couple’s garage.

They also insisted there were multiple ways in which Menendez seemed to serve as an agent of Egypt.

Lawyers for Menendez insisted the three-term senator never accepted bribes and actions he took to benefit the businessmen were the kinds of tasks expected of a public official.

They said his actions helped speed $99 million in military shipments of helicopter ammunition to Egypt, while other communications he carried out with Egyptian officials were also part of his job as a senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a position he was forced to relinquish after charges were announced last fall.

Menendez announced several weeks ago that he plans to run for reelection this year as an independent.

Larry Neumeister, The Associated Press