During the bribery trial, a former high-ranking U.S. agricultural official portrayed Sen. Bob Menendez as the antagonist. He claimed that Menendez attempted to impede his efforts in challenging a unique and unexpected monopoly that emerged five years ago, concerning the certification of meat being exported to Egypt.
In 2019, the Democrat made a brief phone call to Ted McKinney, an official, after New Jersey businessman Wael Hana was given the exclusive authority to certify that meat exported from the United States to Egypt met Islamic dietary standards. This information was shared during the trial in a Manhattan federal court.
Hana, along with Menendez and another businessman, is currently on trial. According to prosecutors, Hana, along with two other New Jersey businessmen, allegedly provided Menendez and his wife with bribes between 2018 and 2022. These bribes, which included gold bars and large sums of cash, were given in exchange for Menendez taking actions that would benefit their business interests.
Menendez, who is 70 years old, along with his codefendants and his wife, who is set to go on trial in July, have all pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against them since last fall.
Hana’s company monopolized the certification of beef and liver exports to Egypt, leading to the closure of several other companies. This unexpected shift happened within a few days in May 2019, which McKinney found to be highly unusual.
“We wasted no time and took immediate action,” recounted the former official, detailing a sequence of measures undertaken by the U.S. in an effort to persuade Egyptian officials to reconsider their decision to grant a monopoly to an inexperienced company for certification purposes. Unfortunately, our attempts to engage in dialogue were met with absolute silence.”
During the frantic efforts, McKinney expressed his disagreement with Egypt’s decision, labeling it as “rather draconian.” He also emphasized that this action would lead to an increase in prices in his communication with the Egyptian authorities.
In late May 2019, Menendez contacted him and explicitly instructed him to stop interfering with his constituent.
He added that in essence, Menendez was telling him to “stand down.”
McKinney began to explain to the senator the rationale behind the U.S. preference for multiple companies certifying meat sent to Egypt, but Menendez rudely interrupted him.
McKinney recounted how Menendez dismissed his concerns about the potential consequences of a monopoly in the beef and liver market. “Forget about it. It’s not important. We don’t need to discuss it,” Menendez reportedly said, brushing off McKinney’s attempts to explain the negative impact it could have. At the time, the U.S. held a significant 60% share of the market in Egypt, making it all the more crucial to address the issue of rising prices and market dominance.
According to him, the senator’s tone during the call was described as “serious, and perhaps even very serious.”
According to McKinney, he was aware of Menendez’s influential position as the leading Democrat on the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee. Despite this, he instructed diplomats in Egypt and within his department to persist in collecting information regarding the sudden shift in Egypt’s policies.
According to him, he instructed them to continue with their current actions and assured them that he would shoulder any criticism or backlash that may arise.
He expressed suspicion, stating, “We had a feeling that something dishonest was taking place.”
McKinney mentioned that he was getting ready to reach out to the senator again to address his concerns. However, he discovered that the FBI was currently investigating the situation regarding the certification of meat being exclusively obtained by one company for export to Egypt.
He informed his department and diplomats overseas to stand down.
McKinney informed them that the FBI now has control over the situation.
Late on Friday, the cross-examination of McKinney commenced, and Menendez’s lawyer brought up the point that Egypt has the authority to decide which company or companies are responsible for certifying meat exported from the United States to Egypt. The lawyer emphasized that Egypt had determined that the current certification providers were not fulfilling their duties adequately.
As he exited the courthouse on Friday, Menendez urged reporters to carefully observe the upcoming cross-examination.
As he stepped into the car and rode away, he shared, “Waiting for the cross will reveal the truth.”
