by Peter Schiff, Schiff Gold:
Last week, a federal grand jury indicted Democrat Senator Bob Menendez and his wife Nadine Arslanian Menendez on bribery charges. According to the indictment, the senator and his wife took bribes, including 13 gold bars, from three New Jersey businessmen with Egyptian ties.
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The indictment charges that Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daibes paid the couple in exchange for Menendez using his influence in Washington D.C. to their benefit. The Menendez’s also allegedly provided “sensitive US Government information and took other steps that secretly aided the Government of Egypt,” as part of the bribery scheme.
In exchange for their influence, the indictment charges that Menendez and his wife received a luxury car, gold bars, and cash, plus payments toward a home mortgage.
According to the indictment, a June 2022 raid at their New Jersey home found ‘over $480,000 in cash – much of it stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe.” Police also found two 1-kg gold bars along with 11 1-ounce gold bars. The value of the gold at the current price is about $157,000.
Southern District of New York attorney Damian Williams said Menendez and his wife wielded “power and influence to protect and enrich the businessmen and benefit the government of Egypt.”
Sen. Menendez denied any wrongdoing, saying, “Those behind this campaign simply cannot accept that a first-generation Latin American from humble beginnings could rise to be a US senator.”
According to the indictment, “Multiple gold bars provided by Daibes were found during the court-authorized June 2022 search of the couple’s home. It also says the senator performed a web search for ‘how much is one kilo of gold worth.’”
He was likely pleased with the answer. Each 1kg bar is worth over $62,000.
You have to give them credit. Gold is an excellent bribe. (Not that one should give or receive bribes in gold or otherwise.) It effectively packs a lot of dollars into a very small space. It’s easy to store and transport. Gold will also hold its value over time, unlike the $480,000 in fiat cash Menendez allegedly accepted.
Assuming you are inclined to report your bribe income to the IRS, taking it in gold can also minimize tax implications. If you know the rules, you can legally avoid reporting certain transactions involving gold to the tax authorities.
Gold is also liquid. Menendez wouldn’t have had any problem selling his gold bars — if he had not gotten nailed by authorities.
There is one thing to be careful of if you’re accepting gold from shady people. (And people offering bribes are, by nature, shady people. But you know this if you’re taking bribes because you’re shady too.) Make sure the gold is real. There are plenty of scammers out there trying to pass off fake gold as the real thing. Given that people prone to bribery aren’t the most trustworthy people you’ll run into, you should use extra caution.
Then again, if you’re accepting bribes, you get what they deserve. So, better yet, skip bribery and just buy gold from a trustworthy dealer such as SchiffGold. You know you won’t get ripped off, and you don’t have to worry about the FBI breaking down your door.
