Senator enters not guilty plea as FBI investigates connections to Egypt

US Senator Bob Menendez and his wife said they are innocent of giving or receiving bribes, even as the FBI investigates his connection with Egyptian officials.

The senator from New Jersey is being accused of taking gold bars and lots of money as bribes.

The authorities claim that he used his power to assist the government of Egypt and his business partners in New Jersey.

The senator refused to quit even though other Democrats asked him to.

The Department of Justice accused Mr Menendez and his wife, Nadine, of accepting bribes and engaging in schemes to extort money. They are also accused of conspiring to commit fraud by dishonestly serving their responsibilities.

The FBI and CBS News are investigating possible bad actions between the senator and Egyptian officials, on top of the bribery charges.

Even though Mr. Menendez is no longer the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, his colleagues, including members of his own party, are asking him to quit.

When he was in charge of the committee, he helped manage lots of money that was given to Egypt by the US.

Mr Menendez’s suspected connection to Egypt has caused members of the US Congress to request a review of $235 million in military assistance given to Cairo.

Chris Murphy, a Democratic Senator, who is in charge of the Middle East subcommittee on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, expressed his hope that the committee would use its power to temporarily stop giving money to Egypt until they investigate and find out what Egypt was actually doing.

Mr Menendez, who is 69 years old, was accused of taking bribes in the past. However, the trial for that case was stopped without a final decision in 2017, which means it did not reach a conclusion.

Last year, when investigators searched the senator’s home in New Jersey, they claim to have found $480,000 in cash hidden all over the house. They also say that they discovered 13 gold bars, which they estimate are worth around $155,000.

The federal indictment claims that Mr Menendez and his wife received money for their home loan, a job where they did little or no work, a fancy car, and other valuable items.

The agents found a fancy Mercedes-Benz parked in the couple’s garage, which was paid for by one of the businessmen.

Three business owners were accused in the legal document. On Tuesday, one person named Wael Hana was brought to court and said they didn’t do anything wrong.