Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) was convicted on Tuesday of multiple federal charges stemming from a complex, yearslong bribery and conspiracy scheme, according to prosecutors.
Menendez faced 16 federal counts, including extortion, honest services wire fraud, obstruction of justice, acting as a foreign agent for Egypt, bribery, and conspiracy.
The jury found him guilty on all charges after deliberating for over 12 hours across three days.
This verdict makes Menendez the seventh sitting U.S. senator to be convicted of a federal crime and significantly increases the pressure on him to resign before his term ends later this year.
The US Senator is also the first senator to be charged with acting as a foreign agent and the first to face separate bribery indictments. His initial prosecution in 2017 ended in a mistrial due to a hung jury.
As the guilty verdicts were read repeatedly, Menendez remained expressionless in the courtroom.
His sentencing is scheduled for October 29, just one week before the election.
The third-term senator from New Jersey was accused of accepting substantial bribes, including hundreds of thousands of dollars, a luxury convertible, furniture, and 13 gold bars, in exchange for directing aid to Egypt, establishing a lucrative halal meat monopoly, and obstructing criminal investigations for the benefit of his associates and family.
The most serious charges, extortion and wire fraud, each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Menendez faces a potential total sentence of 222 years for all 16 charges, although it is likely that any sentences will run concurrently.
At 70 years old, Menendez is facing the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison.
Following the verdict, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called for Menendez’s resignation. “In light of this guilty verdict, Senator Menendez must now do what is right for his constituents, the Senate, and our country, and resign,” Schumer stated.
Rep. Andy Kim, the Democratic nominee set to replace Menendez in the Senate, also urged for his immediate resignation, describing the verdict as “a sad and somber day for New Jersey and our country.”
