July 3 (UPI) — The defense in the bribery trial of U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez rested its case Wednesday without calling the long-serving Democratic lawmaker from New Jersey to testify.
Menendez informed the trial judge, U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein, that he would not take the stand in his own defense shortly before his legal team rested their case, according to multiple reports.
The 70-year-old senator and his wife, Nadine, are facing separate trials in New York on charges of bribery, obstruction and acting as a foreign agent. Bob Menendez is accused of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for political influence.
His trial began eight weeks ago and is now expected to proceed to closing arguments on Monday.
Both he and his wife have pleaded not guilty to all the charges, and following Wednesday’s court session, Menendez told reporters he chose not to testify because he believes his lawyers have disproven the case against him.
“From my perspective, the government has failed to prove every aspect of its case, and for me to testify and give them another chance for a second summation — go through the whole case again, and then go ahead and have their summation, and then have a rebuttal case at the end — it’s simply something that doesn’t make any sense to me whatsoever,” he said.
Prosecutors contend Menendez abused his office and acted as an unregistered foreign agent of Egypt and Qatar. They claim he and his wife accepted cash, gold bars and a Mercedes car in exchange for helping a halal meat monopoly, granting favors for people from Egypt and Qatar and trying to influence a New Jersey prosecution.
More than $480,000 in cash — some of it stuffed into shoes and boxes — and 13 gold bars worth more than $100,000 were found in a search of Menendez’ home. Nearly $80,000 was found in Nadine Menendez’ deposit box at a bank nearby.
Defense attorneys say the hoarding of cash and gold at home is the result of psychological trauma Menendez suffered from his experiences as a member of a Cuban refugee family and the suicide of his father. They also claim the couple led largely separate lives and were not aware of each other’s financial dealings.
Menendez in May revealed his wife has breast cancer.
The trial has not stopped him from filing for re-election. Last month, he filed to run as an independent after state and national Democrats urged him to resign.