US Sen. Menendez to resign following federal bribery conviction

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Democratic US Sen. Bob Menendez will resign effective Aug. 20 after he was convicted of corruption last week, according to media reports on Tuesday.

A federal jury in New York found Menendez guilty on July 16 of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes and acting as an unregistered foreign agent.

The jury deliberated for three days following a nine-week trial, ultimately finding him guilty on all of the 16 counts against the senior senator.

Prosecutors alleged that Menendez, 70, accepted bribes from a trio of New Jersey businessmen that included gold bars, mortgage payments, a luxury car and more than $480,000 in cash. The payments were made in exchange for Menendez carrying out favors that included shielding individuals from prosecution and illicitly using his office to benefit the Egyptian and Qatari governments.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer urged Menendez to step down shortly after the verdict was announced.