(Independent) Pictures of multiple solid gold bars and wads of cash stuffed into boots were among items shown to jurors in the ongoing criminal bribery trial of embattled Senator Bob Menendez.
The collection of images, taken by federal authorities, showed confiscated valuables that had been shoved haphazardly around the New Jersey home of the Democrat’s wife, Nadine Menendez.
Mr Menendez, his wife and three New Jersey men – Wael Hana, Fred Daibes and Jose Uribe – were indicted in September 2023 over an alleged scheme in which the couple accepted gold bars, hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and payments for a Mercedes convertible in exchange for his political influence.
Lawyers for Mr Menendez, 70, of Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, and the businessmen say their clients are not guilty and that the government is trying to turn common interactions between a politician and his constituents into crimes.
However, in June 2022, an FBI raid turned up 13 gold bars and more than $480,000 in cash in the home.
Last week, the federal agent who led the raid testified at trial, saying tens of thousands of dollars were found stuffed in four jackets where the senator kept his coats. Other cash was found in bags and in a closet safe.
Pictures presented as evidence at trial showed gold bars of varying sizes laid out next to each other, some appearing to be worn, while others were kept inside plastic packaging.
Large stacks of bank notes were also found, including stuffed inside what appeared to be a Timberland brand work boot.
