By Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Consultant Henry Cuellar and his spouse had been indicted for allegedly accepting near $600,000 in bribes in two schemes meant to learn an Azerbaijani state-owned vitality firm and an unnamed financial institution primarily based in Mexico, court docket papers confirmed.
The federal indictment, returned by a grand jury in Texas on Tuesday and unsealed on Friday, mentioned the bribes had been laundered by means of sham consulting contracts into shell corporations owned by Imelda Cuellar, the Democratic congressman’s spouse, from December 2014 by means of at the least November 2021.
In trade, it says Henry Cuellar sought to make use of his public place to affect U.S. overseas coverage in Azerbaijan’s favor and to strain U.S. authorities officers to assist the Mexican financial institution foyer in opposition to anti-money laundering enforcement insurance policies and payday lending laws that threatened its enterprise.
Earlier than the fees had been unsealed, Cuellar issued an announcement denying the allegations.
“Each my spouse and I are harmless of those allegations,” mentioned Cuellar.
One of the vital conservative Democrats within the Home of Representatives, Cuellar is looking for an eleventh two-year time period within the Nov. 5 election. He represents a Texas district that borders Mexico and contains Laredo and components of San Antonio.
The 54-page indictment identifies the financial institution solely as “International Financial institution-1,” a Mexico Metropolis-based establishment that conducts payday lending within the U.S. and is a part of a Mexican finance and retail holding firm that additionally owns a Mexican media firm.
That seems to match Grupo Salinas, a sprawling conglomerate managed by Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas, whose enterprise empire contains Banco Azteca. The indictment additionally offers figuring out particulars of a financial institution government who seems to match a not too long ago retired Banco Azteca government.
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“Proper now, we do not have details about this,” Grupo Salinas government Luciano Pascoe advised Reuters by e mail in response to a request for remark.
Cuellar will step down because the rating member of the Homeland Safety Appropriations subcommittee whereas the case is pending, mentioned a spokesperson for Democratic Home Minority Chief Hakeem Jeffries.
Cuellar’s residence and marketing campaign workplace in Laredo had been searched by federal regulation enforcement in January 2022, when Cuellar served as a co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus.
In that capability, he and several other different members of Congress signed a letter urging Congress to offer humanitarian help to help folks displaced following the struggle between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
The indictment cites Cuellar’s help for offering funding to Azerbaijan and a pro-Azerbaijan speech he gave on the Home flooring, amongst different actions.
Cuellar mentioned in his assertion he had sought authorized recommendation from the Home Ethics Committee and a nationwide regulation agency.
“We requested a gathering with the Washington DC prosecutors to elucidate the details and so they refused to debate the case with us or to listen to our aspect,” he added.
The Justice Division mentioned Cuellar and his spouse made preliminary appearances earlier than a federal Justice of the Peace choose in Houston on Friday. They had been launched on bond.
Every faces 14 counts on expenses together with conspiracy, bribery, sincere companies wire fraud, being a public official performing as an agent of a overseas principal, and cash laundering.
A number of of the fees carry a statutory most of 20 years in jail.
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Cuellar isn’t the one member of Congress going through federal expenses.
Democratic Senator Bob Menendez is awaiting trial on corruption expenses in New York, whereas Republican George Santos final 12 months was expelled from the Home whereas he awaits trial on expenses of violating marketing campaign finance legal guidelines.
Each Menendez and Santos deny wrongdoing.
