Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., is maintaining his innocence after being found guilty on all counts in a federal corruption trial on Tuesday.
He was facing 16 charges, including bribery, fraud, extortion and obstruction of justice.
"I have never violated my pubic oath," Menendez said outside of the Manhattan courtroom. "I have never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country."
Over the course of the nine-week trial, prosecutors argued that Menendez abused his power as a senator in exchange for bribes from three New Jersey businessmen between 2018 and 2022. He was also accused of acting as a foreign agent for the government of Egypt.
During an investigation in 2022, investigators said they reviewed Menendez's email accounts and searched his home, where they found hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and gold bars. Menendez's defense team argued that the gold was inherited by his wife Nadine and that Menendez had a habit of storing cash at home because it's something his family did after they immigrated in 1951 to the U.S. from Cuba.
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Nadine was also indicted, but her trial was postponed as she recovers from breast cancer surgery.
It's unclear how this verdict will impact Menendez's political future. Prior to the trial, he refused to resign, and he announced he would run for reelection in November as an independent candidate.
Minutes after the verdict was announced, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for Menendez to step down.
“In light of this guilty verdict, Senator Menendez must now do what is right for his constituents, the Senate, and our country, and resign," he said in a statement.
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