Nadine Arslanian Menendez, wife of recently indicted Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., struck and killed a man while driving her Mercedes-Benz in New Jersey in December 2018, according to police reports obtained by local media.<\/p>\n
She was found not at fault for the incident because the man, identified as Richard Koop, was jaywalking when he was hit, according to the New York Times and The Record. She was not given a DUI test at the scene and was immediately allowed to leave after providing a brief statement, according to dashcam footage of her interaction with Bogota police.<\/p>\n
Arslanian \u2014 who was alone in the vehicle \u2014 was dating Menendez at the time of the fatal crash, which reportedly left Koop\u2019s body severely mutilated, according to the Bergen County medical examiner.<\/p>\n
Menendez commented on the incident to reporters Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u2018It was a tragic accident, and obviously we think of the family,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n
A federal indictment brought by the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, which charges Arslanian and Menendez in a federal bribery scheme, revealed that in January 2019, approximately a month after the crash, Arslanian informed Wael Hana and Jose Uribe, two Egyptian-American businessmen also implicated in the alleged bribery scheme, that she no longer had a vehicle. Hana then provided her with a 2019 Mercedes-Benz \u2014 worth more than $60,000 \u2014 as detailed in the indictment.<\/p>\n
\u2018In exchange, MENENDEZ agreed and sought to interfere in the NJAG\u2019s criminal insurance fraud prosecution of an associate of URIBE and a related investigation involving an employee of URIBE,\u2019 the indictment states.<\/p>\n
Audio recordings from the police dashcam footage featured a man self-identifying as a retired officer from a neighboring department who mentioned that he had come to the scene as a \u2018favor\u2019 for a friend whose wife was acquainted with Arslanian.<\/p>\n
Koop\u2019s sister, Rosemarie Koop-Angelicola, told the Times that their family \u2018has had serious concerns over what we felt was a very sparse, one-sided investigation.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u2018Definitely a lack of legal enthusiasm to take this case, definite lack of media coverage, and a lack of communication by the authorities of Bergen County. We felt that the whole thing was very silently swept under the rug,\u2019 she said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not the first time Arslanian has been involved in a traffic incident. According to public court records, Arslanian reportedly racked up several penalties between 2007 and 2021, including using a mobile phone while driving, ignoring traffic signals and unsafe passing, adding up to about $410 total.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Both Menendez and Arslanian have pleaded not guilty to the federal bribery charges. Fox News Digital reached out to the couple\u2019s representatives but did not hear back by press deadline.<\/p>\n
In June 2022, the FBI executed a search warrant at Menendez\u2019s and his wife\u2019s New Jersey home where federal agents discovered many of the fruits of the alleged bribery scheme, including cash, gold, a luxury convertible and home furnishings. Prosecutors say $480,000 in cash, much of it stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets and a safe, was discovered in the home, as well as more than $70,000 in cash in Nadine\u2019s safe-deposit box. Some of the envelopes contained the fingerprints and\/or DNA of Fred Daibes, another figure in the alleged bribery scheme, or his driver, according to the indictment.<\/p>\n
Some of the envelopes were found inside jackets bearing Menendez\u2019s name and hanging in his closet.<\/p>\n
The Bogota Police Department and Menendez\u2019s office did not respond to Fox News Digital\u2019s requests for comment.<\/p>\n