Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas and his wife have been accused of taking nearly $600,000 in bribes from two foreign entities, according to an indictment in federal court in Texas.
The alleged scheme took place from late 2014 until at least November 2021, the indictment said.
The congressman and his wife, Imelda Cuellar, made their first court appearance in Houston on Friday and were released on $100,000 bond. They face several charges, including conspiracy to bribe a federal official, violating the ban on government officials acting as agents of a foreign principal and money laundering.
In a statement on Friday, Cuellar said: “I want to be clear that both my wife and I are innocent of these charges. Everything I did in Congress was to serve the people of South Texas.”
Cuellar said in his statement that the actions he took in Congress were “in the best interest of the American people” and vowed to continue his bid for re-election in November. The congressman also defended his wife, saying, “The claim that she is anything but qualified and hardworking is both wrong and insulting.”
“The actions I took in Congress were consistent with the actions of many of my colleagues and in the best interests of the American people,” Cuellar said.
Prosecutors say Henry and Imelda Cuellar masterminded a two-year scheme to obtain bribes from foreign entities — an oil and gas company “fully owned and controlled by the government of Azerbaijan, and a bank headquartered in Mexico City.”
In exchange for bribes from the Azerbaijani oil company, Cuellar agreed to perform official acts in his capacity as a member of Congress, to perform acts inconsistent with his official duties, and to act as an agent of the government of Azerbaijan . the bank, according to the indictment.
Among these promises, prosecutors allege that Cuellar agreed to influence U.S. policy through a “series of legislative measures related to Azerbaijan’s conflict with neighboring Armenia,” by delivering a pro-Azerbaijani speech in the House of Representatives, stating he included language “Azerbaijan prefers” in the legislation and committee reports, and advocated “a series of legislative measures regarding Azerbaijan’s conflict with neighboring Armenia.”
The Texas Democrat also reportedly pledged to influence financial regulation in ways that would benefit the Mexican bank and its subsidiaries, including by pressuring the executive branch on anti-money laundering enforcement practices money that ‘threaten’ their business interests, and by supporting revisions to the law. criminal laws on money laundering.
The couple received the bribes through shell companies owned by Imelda Cuellar, prosecutors say. They allegedly used the proceeds from the bribery schemes to pay taxes, pay off debts and spend tens of thousands of dollars in restaurants and stores. One purchase was a $12,000 custom-made dress, according to the indictment.
Cuellar’s home and campaign office in Laredo, Texas, were raided by the FBI in 2022. The charges against Cuellar are not yet publicly available.
A spokesperson for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries released a statement shortly after Cuellar’s allegations were reported saying the congressman is entitled to the presumption of innocence. But spokesperson Christie Stephenson said Cuellar will temporarily step down from his top position on a House Appropriations subcommittee while the investigation is ongoing.
“Henry Cuellar has admirably dedicated his career to public service and is a valued member of the House Democratic Caucus. Like every American, Congressman Cuellar is entitled to his day in court and to the presumption of innocence throughout the legal process,” said Stephenson.
The National Republican Congressional Committee quickly called on Cuellar to resign.
“If his colleagues truly believe in putting ‘people before politics’, they will call on him to resign. If not, they are hypocrites whose statements about public service are not worth the paper they are written on,” Delanie Bomar, a spokesperson for the NRCC, said in a statement.
CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect that a spokesperson for Hakeem Jeffries released a statement following news of Cuellar’s allegations. This story and headline have also been updated with additional developments.
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