The Justice Department on Friday prosecuted Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, and his otherhalf of accepting some $600,000 in kickbacks from 2 foreign business in exchange for political prefers. Cuellar released a declaration declaring both he and his otherhalf are “innocent of these claims.” File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo
May 3 (UPI) — The Justice Department on Friday arraigned Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, and his partner on charges of conspiracy and accepting almost $600,000 in kickbacks from foreign entities.
The charges declared Cuellar and his spouse, Imelda Cuellar, accepted almost $600,000 in kickbacks from an oil and gas business owned by the Azerbaijan federalgovernment and a bank headquartered in Mexico City in exchange for political prefers.
The plan presumably took location from 2014 to 2021, according to the indictment.
Cuellar apparently “agreed to carryout main acts in his capability as a member of Congress, to devote acts in infraction of his authorities tasks, and to act as an representative of the federalgovernment of Azerbaijan,” according to the indictment.
Prosecutors declared Cuellar concurred to impact U.S. policy through a “series of legal steps relating to Azerbaijan’s dispute with surrounding Armenia.”
Cuellar is a previous co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijani Caucus and fulfilled with Azerbaijani authorities in that function.
Prosecutors likewise implicated Cuellar of affecting federal monetary market guidelines to advantage the Mexico City bank. He supposedly worked to pressure the executive branch on anti-money laundering enforcement practices that “threatened” the bank’s company interest.
Imelda Cuellar apparently offered sham consulting services to the 2 business in order to wash the payments, while offering “little to no genuine work under the agreements,” according to districtattorneys.
The Cuellars made an preliminary cour