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8 months ago
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Her husband may be threatening to throw her under the bus in their bribery trial.
But daily life appeared to continue as normal for Nadine Menendez on Wednesday as she was spotted gardening at their New Jersey home.
DailyMail.com captured the wife of the scandal-hit Democratic Senator Bob outside the house tending to the plants and wearing yellow Marigold gloves.
The 57-year-old also took out the trash, while wearing sweatpants and heels, and at one point used an empty Coke Zero box to hide her face from the cameras.
She was spotted hours after bombshell court documents were released suggesting her husband, 70, may blame her for the widespread corruption scandal that includes gold bars, piles of cash and favors for the Egyptian government.
The New Jersey Senator and his wife are accused of receiving lavish gifts - including luxury cars and stacks of money - as part of a bribery plot to help the Egyptian government and businessmen facing their own criminal investigations.
Nandine Menendez does gardening at her New Jersey home, hours after court documents were released suggesting her Democratic senator husband Bob may blame her for their alleged bribery scheme
DailyMail.com captured the wife of the scandal-hit Democratic Senator Bob outside the house tending to the plants while wearing yellow Marigold gloves
Parts of a court filing by lawyers for the Democrat were unsealed in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday after some news organizations insisted that public disclosure was required.
Bob Menendez's lawyers had redacted the documents, claiming that the sentences revealed trial strategy that could bias the jury pool.
According to the unsealed passages, Menendez plans to testify about what he believes were exculpatory communications with Nadine if he decides to take the witness stand in his defense.
'While these explanations, and the marital communications on which they rely, will tend to exonerate Senator Menendez by demonstrating the absence of any improper intent on Senator Menendez´s part, they may inculpate Nadine by demonstrating the ways in which she withheld information from Senator Menendez or otherwise led him to believe that nothing unlawful was taking place,' the lawyers wrote.
As they sought to sever the trials of the senator and his wife, the lawyers said they planned to assert at trial that Sen. Menendez lacked the knowledge necessary to commit a crime and did not agree to any of the conspiracies outlined in the indictment against him.
The 57-year-old was spotted hours after bombshell court documents were released suggesting her husband might throw her under the bus
The 57-year-old also took out the trash, while wearing sweatpants and heels, and at one point used an empty Coke Zero box to hide her face from the cameras
The New Jersey Senator and his wife are accused of receiving lavish gifts including luxury cars and money as part of a bribery plot to help the Egyptian government and businessmen facing their own criminal investigations
Nadine Menendez opens one of the side doors to her home while wearing her yellow gloves
According to the unsealed passages, Menendez plans to testify about what he believes were exculpatory communications with Nadine if he decides to take the witness stand in his defense
Images of the gold bars federal agents seized from Menendez's home during the probe
Menendez may seek exoneration at his May bribery trial by blaming his wife Nadine (pictured right). New court documents suggest he will say she kept him in the dark about dealings with New Jersey businessmen
With such a trial strategy, the lawyers said they may have to argue, in effect, that any crimes involved the actions of others, including his wife, rather than the senator. They added, though, that they were not aware of any unlawful conduct.
Although the motion to sever the trials was initially denied, Judge Sidney H. Stein has since ruled that they can take place separately after it was revealed that Nadine Menendez needs surgery in the next six weeks. Her trial is now delayed until at least July.
The Menendezes and two businessmen have pleaded not guilty to charges that they participated in a bribery scheme in which prosecutors say cash and gold bars were given to the couple in return for the senator carrying out political favors.
Menendez has also refused to step down from his Senate seat, though he has not run in the Democratic primary to retain the seat this year.
He remains open to running as an independent once the trial ends.
Senator Robert and Nadine Menendez' engagement at the Taj Mahal, India
The revelations about the strategy for the man who has been nicknamed 'Gold Bars Bob' came from court papers unsealed Tuesday
FBI agents seized gold bars, $500,000 in cash and the Mercedes during a raid on his home when the investigation began
Last week, it was revealed the couple will be tried separately on allegations that they participated in the scheme, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
The New Jersey Democrat's trial will remain scheduled for May 6 in Manhattan federal court, while Nadine Menendez's trial was tentatively pushed back to July 8.
Bob Menendez chaired the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee until he stepped down from that role in September because of the allegations.
Prosecutors allege that in return for the bribes, Menendez helped one of the businessmen get a lucrative meat-certification deal with Egypt.
Menendez helped another associate get a deal with a Qatari investment fund, an indictment alleges.
A third businessman, Jose Uribe, has pleaded guilty to bribery charges and agreed to testify against the others at trial.
Uribe said he conspired with Nadine Menendez and others to provide her with a Mercedes-Benz in return for access to her husband´s power and influence.
The senator's lawyers had claimed the warrants were 'riddled with material misrepresentation and omissions that deceived the authorizing magistrate judge.'
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