Investigators want to know if Menendez got gifts from the owners or associates of a New Jersey company that won a controversial contract with the Egyptian government.
The Department of Justice is investigating whether expensive gifts were given to New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez and his wife, including a Mercedes-Benz, a luxury D.C. apartment, money and jewelry, sources familiar with the matter said.
According to sources, investigators want to know if the gifts — which would be valued in the tens of thousands of dollars — came from the owner or associates of an Edgewater, N.J., business that won a controversial exclusive contract to perform Halal meat certification with the Egyptian government — even though U.S. Department of Agriculture officials complained that the firm had no previous experience in this field.
The questions about the gifts were first reported by WNBC and NBCNew York.
“I am sure it is going to end up in absolutely nothing,” Menendez said last week, denying any wrongdoing in connection with the ongoing federal corruption investigation.
Sources familiar with the matter say Damian Williams, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, along with FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation agents are looking into whether the senator and his wife, Nadine Arslanian, improperly took gifts from the owner or associates of IS EG Halal — and whether the senator took any action in return.
Menendez, a Democrat, serves as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee helping to oversee billions of dollars in aid to Egypt.
“Prosecutors would obviously want to look if money, apartments, cars were given to the senator or someone close to him in return for one of his official acts,” NBC News legal analyst Chuck Rosenberg said.
In addition to the investigation into any possible quid-pro-quo scheme, sources familiar with the matter said IRS criminal investigators are looking into whether the alleged gifts were properly accounted for on tax filings by the senator and his wife. None of the items appear listed on Menendez’s Senate disclosure forms.
Senate rules state in part that gifts to a member or someone close to him are considered gifts if a senator “has reason to believe the gift was given because of the official position.”
A spokeswoman for Menendez declined to comment when asked if the senator or his wife received a Mercedes, free rent, money or jewelry from the IS EG Halal business or associates. She referred NBC News to past statements in which the senator acknowledged an ongoing “inquiry” and said that “should there be any official inquiries, the senator is available to provide any assistance requested of him or his office.”
In 2019, IS EG Halal was awarded an exclusive contract with the Egyptian government to certify Halal meat exports worldwide. Seven longtime companies across the globe were suddenly fired by the Egyptian government and those firms lost millions in business to the Edgewater firm — a firm run by a Christian with little prior experience in Islamic certification of international meat imports and exports.
Peter Paradis, the former deputy assistant inspector general at the USDA, said the change in contracts “defies logic.”
Paradis played no role in the current criminal investigation into the senator and his relationship with IS EG Halal. But Paradis points to past USDA reports on the controversy, including one that stated IS EG Halal “has no preexisting relationship with the US beef industry or Islamic organizations.”
“Prosecutors would obviously want to look if money, apartments, cars were given to the senator or someone close to him in return for one of his official acts,” NBC News legal analyst Chuck Rosenberg said.
In addition to the investigation into any possible quid-pro-quo scheme, sources familiar with the matter said IRS criminal investigators are looking into whether the alleged gifts were properly accounted for on tax filings by the senator and his wife. None of the items appear listed on Menendez’s Senate disclosure forms.
Senate rules state in part that gifts to a member or someone close to him are considered gifts if a senator “has reason to believe the gift was given because of the official position.”
A spokeswoman for Menendez declined to comment when asked if the senator or his wife received a Mercedes, free rent, money or jewelry from the IS EG Halal business or associates. She referred NBC News to past statements in which the senator acknowledged an ongoing “inquiry” and said that “should there be any official inquiries, the senator is available to provide any assistance requested of him or his office.”
In 2019, IS EG Halal was awarded an exclusive contract with the Egyptian government to certify Halal meat exports worldwide. Seven longtime companies across the globe were suddenly fired by the Egyptian government and those firms lost millions in business to the Edgewater firm — a firm run by a Christian with little prior experience in Islamic certification of international meat imports and exports.
Peter Paradis, the former deputy assistant inspector general at the USDA, said the change in contracts “defies logic.”
Paradis played no role in the current criminal investigation into the senator and his relationship with IS EG Halal. But Paradis points to past USDA reports on the controversy, including one that stated IS EG Halal “has no preexisting relationship with the US beef industry or Islamic organizations.”
