Some gold bars discovered by federal agents at the residence of Democratic New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez as part of a high-profile bribery investigation can be traced to a violent robbery a decade ago.
According to the sweeping indictment unsealed by federal prosecutors in September, Menendez and his wife allegedly played a role in a years-long bribery scheme involving the Egyptian government and local businessmen including Fred Daibes, a wealthy New Jersey real estate developer. Prosecutors announced that they recovered several gold bars from Menendez’s home that were allegedly used as payment in the scheme.
At least four of the gold bars uncovered by investigators can be linked to Daibes, thanks to their uniquely engraved serial numbers and thanks to court documents related to a 2013 robbery in which Daibes was the victim, a NBC New York revealed the investigation monday In November 2013, four assailants beat and robbed Daibes in his apartment in Edgewater, New Jersey, stealing 22 gold bars, jewelry and cash.
“Each gold bar has its own serial number,” Daibes told local investigators in a 2014 transcript obtained by NBC New York. “They’re all sealed … you’ll never see two sealed the same.”
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An evidentiary photo published in the federal indictment in September by Sen. Bob Menendez, DN.J., displays a gold bar with the serial number “590005.” Both gold bars were stolen in a 2013 robbery. (United States District Court)
Photos released by the Department of Justice in September showing gold bars discovered in Menendez’s home, for example, show that one of the bars has the serial number “590005.” Daibes reported a gold bar with the same serial number stolen in the 2013 heist, NBC New York reported.
And the federal indictment alleges that the serial numbers on the gold bars indicate they were once owned by Daibes.
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“A court-authorized search of the residence of Robert Menendez and Nadine Menendez, a/k/a ‘Nadine Arslanian,’ the defendants, revealed, among other things, approximately two one-kilogram gold bars and nine one-ounce gold bars bearing serial numbers indicating that they were formerly owned by Fred Daibes, the defendant,” the indictment states.
Additionally, when Daibes reported the theft to the police in 2013, he said 22 gold bars were taken. Similarly, the indictment in September states that Daibes sold 22 gold bars to Wael Hana, another accused allegedly involved in the bribery scheme.
Sen. Bob Menendez, DN.J., was charged with bribery in September. Since then he has repeatedly claimed that he is innocent of any wrongdoing. (Getty Images | United States District Court for the Southern District of New York)
Police eventually arrested and charged four individuals for robbing Daibes in 2013, according to local media reports. Then, in September 2015, all the suspects pleaded guilty and were ultimately sentenced to several months in prison.
Meanwhile, since the federal bribery indictment was unsealed earlier this year, Menendez has repeatedly asserted his innocence and remained in the Senate.
“The allegations leveled against me are just that, allegations,” Menendez said on September 25. “For anyone who has known me throughout my 50 years of public service, they know that I have always fought for what is right. My advocacy is always grounded. And what I learned growing up as the daughter of Cuban refugees, especially my mom, my hero, Evangelina Menendez. Everything I’ve done, I’ve worked hard despite the naysayers and all the downers I.
“I believe that when all the facts are presented, not only will I be exonerated, but I will still be the senior senator of New Jersey,” he added. “The court of public opinion is no substitute for our respected justice system. We cannot set aside the presumption of innocence for political expediency when the damage is irreversible.”
