Trial date set in Bob Menendez's federal bribery case

Sen. Bob Menendez should plan on a busy spring in 2024. He and his four co-defendants will face trial for an alleged bribery scheme just weeks before he will compete in what will likely be a contentious Democratic primary to defend his U.S. Senate seat.

Menendez faces corruption charges, brought by the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, for allegedly accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from three businessmen in exchange for helping them enrich themselves and trying to get them out of trouble, according to an indictment unsealed on Sept. 22 in New York.

At a conference in federal court in lower Manhattan on Monday, Judge Sidney Stein scheduled the trial to start on May 6 for the senior senator and the other four defendants  — his wife, Nadine Arslanian Menendez, and businessmen Wael Hana, Fred Daibes and Jose Uribe.

Stein said he hoped to schedule the trial with speed — but acknowledged that it would be easier said than done.

"I would rather get this moving," the judge said during Monday's hearing.

The government is required to turn over what it refers to as “voluminous” evidence by a discovery deadline Stein set for Dec. 4.

That includes classified documents, though, and will have to be reviewed. Relevant attorneys will be given security checks before the material is shared. The prosecution also noted that it is continuing the investigation and more indictments could follow.

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The trial is expected to last four to six weeks, Stein said.

Larry Lustberg, an attorney for Hana, said he hasn’t “heard any discussion of any plea deals or various defendants pleading out.”

Menendez was not at the conference Monday, but the four other defendants were.

What does the indictment say?

The indictment alleges that between 2018 and 2022, Menendez, who until Friday served as the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and his wife “engaged in a corrupt relationship with Hana, Uribe and Daibes” to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for Menendez using his “power and influence to protect, to enrich those businessmen and to benefit the government of Egypt.”

Bribes allegedly included cash, gold bars, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low- or no-show job and a Mercedes-Benz — much of which is detailed in photographs in the 39-page indictment.

Indictment document: Read the full text of the Menendez indictment

Calls for resignation continue to mount

The chorus calling for Menendez's resignation continues to grow. Last week, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker said that since Menendez denies the allegations, it is “understandable that he believes stepping down is patently unfair" but that he sees that as a mistake and believes “stepping down is best for those Senator Menendez has spent his life serving.”

Booker stood by Menendez when he was indicted in 2015. Menendez denies the current accusations, saying Monday that the "allegations leveled against me are just that" and calling this "the biggest fight yet" but saying he “firmly believes that when all the facts are presented” he will be exonerated.

Gov. Phil Murphy and other New Jersey Democrats have called on Menendez to step down — in stark contrast to the support Menendez received from most Democrats during his earlier corruption case..

Other Democratic senators calling on Menendez to resign include John Fetterman and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Peter Welch of Vermont, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Jon Tester of Montana and Jacky Rosen of Nevada.

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The Senate seat

Menendez is up for reelection next fall, and to secure his spot on the ballot, he will need to win the primary on June 4, likely around the time of closing arguments in the case.

Rep. Andy Kim has already announced that he intends to run in that race. He said in a statement that this is "not something I expected to do, but I believe New Jersey deserves better."

"We cannot jeopardize the Senate or compromise our country’s integrity," Kim said. "I believe it’s time we restore faith in our democracy, and that’s why I am stepping up and running for Senate.”

Reports have surfaced in recent weeks that New Jersey’s first lady, Tammy Murphy, is considering a run for the seat as well.

Candidates have until March to officially file for a spot on the ballot.

Staff Writer Mike Kelly contributed to this story.

Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Sen. Bob Menendez indictment: Trial date set for bribery charges