According to two people with knowledge of the situation, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) is the subject of a federal criminal investigation being conducted by the United States Attorney’s Office in Manhattan.
Menendez’s office confirmed the senator is aware of the ongoing investigation, the nature of which is not yet known.
“Senator Menendez is aware of an investigation that was reported on today, however he does not know the scope of the investigation. As always, should any official inquiries be made, the Senator is available to provide any assistance that is requested of him or his office,” adviser Michael Soliman said in a statement.
Related: You Knew the FBI Was Corrupt, But Did You Know It Was THIS Bad?
Menendez, who is the chairman of the influential Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, is no stranger to being the target of an investigation yet has managed to avoid being held accountable for any of the crimes he’s been accused of.
In 2012, he and businessman Salomon Melgen were accused of traveling to the Dominican Republic to have sex with underage prostitutes. While the media has sought to discredit these claims, federal prosecutors believed Menendez was guilty. He was never charged, not even in 2015 when he was indicted on corruption charges. Court filings in that investigation revealed that the federal government had “corroborating evidence” supporting allegations of Menendez soliciting underage prostitutes.
“Presented with specific, corroborated allegations that defendants Menendez and Melgen had sex with underage prostitutes in the Dominican Republic, the Government responsibly and dutifully investigated those serious allegations,” a 2015 court filing explained. “The indictment here, of course, charges only corruption and does not include any allegations of soliciting underage prostitution.”
Though Menendez resigned as ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee, he did not resign from the U.S. Senate. His trial ended in a mistrial, and he was re-elected to another six-year term in 2018.
Menendez has been a constant reminder of how Democrats manage to survive scandals so easily. It seems like a safe bet he’ll survive this new one as well.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member