Cuellar, wife indicted on bribery charges

Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) and his wife were indicted Friday on charges related to accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes and laundering funds.

The indictment filed by the Justice Department details payments Cuellar allegedly accepted from both an oil company owned by the Azerbaijani government and a Mexican bank.

“The bribe payments were allegedly laundered, under false consulting contracts, through a series of shell companies and intermediaries in shell companies owned by Imelda Cuellar, who performed little or no legitimate work under the contracts,” he wrote the DOJ in a press release announcing the indictment in the Southern District of Texas.

“In exchange for bribes paid by the Azerbaijani oil and gas company, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to use his position to influence U.S. foreign policy in favor of Azerbaijan. In exchange for bribes paid by the Mexican bank, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to influence legislative activity and to advise and pressure senior officials in the U.S. Executive Branch on measures beneficial to the bank.”

Cuellar denied that he or his wife did anything wrong in a statement released before the allegations were revealed.

“I want to make it clear that both my wife and I are innocent of these allegations. Everything I did in Congress was to serve the people of South Texas,” Cuellar said in a statement through his campaign.

“Before taking any action, I proactively sought legal advice from the House Ethics Committee, which provided me with more than one written opinion, along with an additional opinion from a national law firm. The actions I took in Congress were consistent with the actions of many of my colleagues and in the interests of the American people.”

Cuellar, who is co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus, will have to resign as ranking member of the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ (DN.Y) office noted in a statement nodding to the house rules.

“Henry Cuellar has admirably dedicated his career to public service and is a valued member of the House Democratic Caucus. Like any American, Congressman Cuellar is entitled to his day in court and the presumption of innocence throughout the legal process,” Jeffries spokeswoman Christie Stephenson said in the statement.

Cuellar also noted Friday that he still plans to seek re-election.

The indictment makes Cuellar the second lawmaker in the past year to face bribery charges related to a foreign government alongside his wife. Senator Bob Menendez (DN.J.) and his wife are facing trial for accepting bribes and taking actions beneficial to the government of Egypt.

Under development