Former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez has been sentenced to 11 years in prison, following his conviction on bribery and corruption charges
Last July, a jury found Menendez guilty on 16 counts for accepting gifts, including gold bars, cash and a Mercedes-Benz, in exchange for helping foreign governments.
Prosecutors were seeking at least a 15-year sentence, citing in court documents the “rare gravity” of the ex-senator’s crimes.
Lawyers for Menendez, 71, had called for a shorter sentence paired with community service.
“Somewhere along the way, you became, I’m sorry to say, a corrupt politician,” US Judge Sidney Stein said before handing down Menendez’s sentence, according to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.
Before receiving his sentence, Menendez cried while addressing the courtroom.
“Other than family, I have lost everything I ever cared about,” he said, according to court reporters. “Every day I’m awake is a punishment.”
He then asked the judge “to temper your sword of justice with the mercy of a lifetime of duty”.
Menendez’s son, Rob Menendez, a Democratic congressman, and his daughter, MSNBC anchor Alicia Menendez, were seated in court behind their father.
Earlier on Wednesday, two of Menendez’s co-conspirators were sentenced in the case.
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