Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., turned the first Property Democrat to phone on Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, to resign hrs just after he was indicted on bribery and funds laundering fees.
“Even though the bar for Federal indictment is high, believe in in our government is lower,” Phillips said in a assertion posted to his social media. “That’s why office holders and candidates less than indictment need to resign or finish their strategies, which include Sen. Bob Menendez, Donald Trump, & Rep. Henry Cuellar.”
U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, also a Democrat, faces obstruction of justice costs linked to bribery allegations. Former President Trump is currently on demo for alleged hush income payments he built ahead of the 2016 election.
DEMOCRATIC TEXAS REP HENRY CUELLAR INDICTED BY DOJ ON CONSPIRACY AND BRIBERY Charges
U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, was indicted on bribery charges Friday. ( Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The Office of Justice indicted Cuellar and his spouse Imelda on conspiracy and bribery charges Friday in relationship with $600,000 in bribes they allegedly acknowledged between 2014 and 2021 from an Azerbaijan-dependent vitality organization and a financial institution in Mexico City to progress the previous Soviet republic’s pursuits in the U.S.
The pair have been produced on bond, Fox Information has verified.
Federal law enforcement raided Cuellar’s dwelling and workplace in 2022 as portion of an investigation into a group of U.S. businessmen, and their ties to the nation. The representative and his office environment agreed to cooperate with the investigation.
Cuellar introduced a assertion on Friday following reports of the impending indictment, declaring both himself and his spouse as harmless with out specifying the charges.
Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., is the initial Democrat to connect with fellow Democratic Rep. Cuellar to resign. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Photographs)
“I want to be crystal clear that the two my wife and I are innocent of these allegations,” wrote Cuellar. “All the things I have done in Congress has been to serve the people of Texas.”
The Texas consultant specifically defended his spouse and her skills, once again without specifying the nature of the indictments.
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., also faces federal rates. (AP Picture/Mariam Zuhaib)
“Imelda and I have been married 32 decades. On top rated of currently being an amazing wife and mom, she’s an completed businesswoman with two degrees. She used her career working with banking, tax, and consulting. The allegation that she is everything but certified and difficult functioning is the two mistaken and offensive,” he wrote.
Cuellar, 68, and his wife, 67, made their very first courtroom visual appeal on Friday in entrance of U.S. Justice of the peace Judge Dena Palermo in Houston.
“The bribe payments have been allegedly laundered, pursuant to sham consulting contracts, by a series of front companies and middlemen into shell organizations owned by Imelda Cuellar, who performed minimal to no legit do the job beneath the contracts,” the DOJ reported of the indictments. “In exchange for the bribes paid by the Azerbaijani oil and gas corporation, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to use his workplace to impact U.S. overseas policy in favor of Azerbaijan. In exchange for the bribes compensated by the Mexican financial institution, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to influence legislative action and to suggest and stress significant-position U.S. Government Department officers pertaining to measures valuable to the bank.”
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They each and every deal with two counts of conspiracy to dedicate bribery of a federal formal and to have a general public official act as an agent of a foreign principal, two counts of bribery of a federal official, two counts of conspiracy to dedicate trustworthy products and services wire fraud, two counts of violating the ban on public officers performing as brokers of a international principal, just one count of conspiracy to dedicate concealment funds laundering, and five counts of funds laundering.
Fox News’ Chad Pergram, Kelly Phares and Timothy H.J. Nerozzi contributed to this report.
