Prosecutors seek 15 years in prison for former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez after bribery conviction

Prosecutors say former US Sen. Bob Menendez should be imprisoned for 15 years, after the Democrat from New Jersey became the first to be convicted of abusing a Senate committee leadership position and the first public official to be convicted of serving as a foreign agent.

Prosecutors say former US Sen. Bob Menendez should be imprisoned for 15 years, after the Democrat from New Jersey became the first to be convicted of abusing a Senate committee leadership position and the first public official to be convicted of serving as a foreign agent. In papers filed late Thursday in Manhattan federal court, prosecutors called for the lengthy prison term for the 71-year-old Menendez when he is sentenced on January 29. Menendez was convicted in July of 16 corruption charges brought after an FBI raid on his residence in 2022 turned up $150,000 in gold bars and $480,000 in cash, much of which prosecutors alleged was the result of bribes paid by three New Jersey businessmen who wanted the senator to use his power to protect their interests and make them money. When he was charged in fall 2023, Menendez was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was forced out of that position later that year and gave up his Senate seat in August. In presentence arguments last week, defense lawyers called for Judge Sidney H. Stein to be lenient with Menendez, saying his conviction had “rendered him a national punchline and stripped him of every conceivable personal, professional, and financial benefit.” “Bob is deserving of mercy because of the penalties already imposed, his age, and the lack of a compelling need to impose a custodial sentence,” the lawyers said.