One of the accomplices in the corruption schemes of the head of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Robert Menendez, Wael Khan, was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Tuesday, the New York Times reports, citing his lawyer.
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“Businessman Wael Hana, who… was part of the corruption scheme… of Robert Menendez, was arrested Tuesday morning at Kennedy International Airport,” the newspaper reports, citing Hana’s lawyer.
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According to the New York Times, Wael Hana voluntarily came to the United States from Egypt to appear in court in Manhattan. As the newspaper notes, citing the indictment in the Menendez case, Hana helped organize meetings between Robert Menendez, the senator’s wife, Egyptian military and intelligence officials to use Menendez’s influence to increase US aid to Egypt.
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“Hana, a longtime friend of Menendez’s wife, founded the company IS EG Halal, which was the only certification body for halal meat imported into Egypt. The organization became the channel through which the senator received money,” the newspaper reports, citing the opinion of prosecutors in the Menendez case.
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Wael Hana pleaded not guilty during a federal magistrate court hearing late Tuesday, according to the New York Times. The newspaper emphasizes, citing a court decision, that Hana was released on bail in the amount of five million dollars, but was forced to surrender his passport and wear a GPS monitoring device.
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Earlier, the New York prosecutor’s office reported that the first hearing in the corruption case against the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, New Jersey Democrat Robert Menendez, would be held on Wednesday.
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Last week, prosecutors charged Menendez and his wife with assisting Egyptian businessmen and authorities in exchange for bribes. According to the New York prosecutor’s office, the investigation lasted for several years. According to the prosecution, they “were associated with three partners and businessmen in New Jersey” and “used their position to secure a monopoly in the supply of food and military aid to Egypt.” During a search at the senator’s residence, $480,000 in cash and gold bars worth $100,000 were discovered and seized; in exchange for their assistance, the couple received remuneration in the form of expensive furniture, a car, and even work for the senator’s wife.
