Opening statements to kick off in Sen. Bob Menendez's criminal trial

NEW YORK (AP) — At the opening of U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez’s trial, a prosecutor pointed the finger at him, calling the Democrat corrupt and telling a federal jury in New York on Wednesday that he traded his power in return for bribes of gold bars, cash and a car. Later, Menendez’s lawyer called prosecutors “dead wrong.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Pomerantz said the 70-year-old New Jersey politician delivered favors for three New Jersey businessmen since 2018. And she also put his wife, Nadine Menendez, at the center of the crimes, saying the scheme started in 2018 when he and his wife-to-be had begun dating.

Pomerantz said the senator was careful not to send too many written communications involving the bribery scheme and used his wife to communicate.