By Ryan Morgan |
Jose Uribe, a New Jersey businessman charged in September with attempting to bribe Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), revealed on Thursday that he intends to plead guilty to the charges.
Appearing in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on Friday, Mr. Uribe and his lawyers filed a waiver of indictment and asked to withdraw his prior plea of not guilty. Mr. Uribe’s legal team indicated he now intends to admit guilt to counts of conspiracy to commit bribery, attempt and conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to obstruct justice, attempted tax evasion, and obstructing justice by making false and misleading statements to federal investigators.
In a brief docket entry on Friday, U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein said the court accepts the guilty plea.
Mr. Uribe was originally charged as a co-defendant alongside Mr. Menendez, his wife Nadine Menendez, and fellow New Jersey businessmen Wael Hana and Fred Daibes.
All five defendants were alleged to have conspired together, with the three New Jersey businessmen allegedly lavishing the U.S. Senator and his wife with bribes, including cash, gold bars, and a convertible Mercedes-Benz C-300 luxury car. In turn, the Senator allegedly worked to benefit the New Jersey businessmen, including those with business interests tied to Egypt.
Mr. Uribe, in particular, is alleged to have maintained the payments for the Mercedes Benz, which investigators found parked in the garage of Mr. Menendez’s home. In return for this luxury car, Mr. Uribe allegedly sought Mr. Menendez’s help resolving a New Jersey state criminal prosecution against one of Mr. Uribe’s business partners.
The exact specifics of Mr. Uribe’s plea agreement are not yet clear, and what factual allegations in the case he will attest to remain to be seen. Nevertheless, Mr. Uribe’s decision to admit guilt for the bribery and honest services fraud in which Mr. and Mrs. Menendez are also charged could bolster the legal case against the senator and his wife.
NTD News reached out to Mr. Uribe’s legal team and federal prosecutors in the case, requesting more details about the plea arrangement. NTD News did not receive a response from either the prosecutors or the defendant by press time.
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