Sen. Bob Menendez faces charge of aiding Qatari government

NEW YORK — U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez was charged on Tuesday with using his influence to aid the government of Qatar.

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Menendez, 70, D-N.J., was charged by federal prosecutors in Manhattan with accepting bribes from New Jersey developer Fred Daibes in exchange for the senator’s help in securing financial backing from an investment fund, which had ties to the Gulf nation, The New York Times reported.

That makes Qatar the second foreign country that Menendez is accused of helping while in office, according to CNN. He previously was accused of using his political influence to benefit Egypt, the Times reported.

“When he accepted at least certain of those things of value,” prosecutors wrote, Daibes “also expected Menendez in exchange to take action to benefit the government of Qatar, and thereby benefit Daibes, who was seeking millions of dollars in investment from a fund with ties to the government of Qatar.”

No new charges were added to the latest version of an indictment that already charged Menendez in a bribery conspiracy, The Associated Press reported. That filing alleged that Menendez and his wife received cash, gold bars and a luxury car. The allegations involving Qatar occurred from 2021 through 2023, according to the indictment.

Lawyers for Menendez could not be immediately reached for comment, the Times reported. Tim Donohue, a lawyer for Daibes, said he had no immediate comment, according to the AP.

The new indictment, filed in Manhattan federal court, did not identify the member of the Qatari royal family, but it said the individual was a principal of the Qatari Investment Co., according to the AP.

The new indictment adds to the government’s allegations that Menendez, who was the head of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, used his official position to give benefits to foreign governments in exchange for bribes totaling in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, the Times reported.

Prosecutors said Menendez did not note on his financial disclosure forms gifts he received from Qatar and Daibes, CNN reported.

In October, the senator, his wife, Nadine Menendez, and Wael Hana were accused of conspiring to have Sen. Menendez work on behalf of the Egyptian government without registering as an agent with the Justice Department, the Times reported.

Menendez and his co-defendants have pleaded not guilty to those charges, according to the newspaper. They are scheduled for trial in U.S. District Court in Manhattan in May.

After his September arrest, the senator gave up his position as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the AP reported. He has rebuffed calls for him to resign his Senate seat.

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