[THEGATEWAYPUNDIT]In 2013, U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar and his wife took a seemingly routine trip to Turkey and Azerbaijan, funded by an obscure Houston-based nonprofit.
The Cuellars allegedly funneled money through front companies, spent it on luxury items such as a $12,000 gown and restaurant bills, and concealed the transactions through intermediaries.
One of those intermediaries, Florencio “Lencho” Rendon, a longtime associate of Cuellar, has already pleaded guilty to money laundering. So has Colin Strother, Cuellar’s former chief of staff and campaign manager, who prosecutors say funneled monthly payments to Cuellar’s wife. |
What followed, federal prosecutors now allege, was a years-long scheme involving foreign influence, money laundering, and one of the most serious indictments ever brought against a sitting member of Congress.
According to a federal indictment unsealed last week, Cuellar and his wife accepted nearly $600,000 in bribes from two foreign entities: Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil company, SOCAR, and Mexico’s Banco Azteca.
Prosecutors allege that Cuellar, a Democrat from Laredo, Texas, used his office to advance the interests of these entities in exchange for payments disguised as consulting fees to shell companies owned by his wife.
The indictment accuses Cuellar of acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government—a rare charge previously brought against Sen. Bob Menendez in 2023 for working on behalf of Egypt.
The Cuellars allegedly funneled money through front companies, spent it on luxury items such as a $12,000 gown and restaurant bills, and concealed the transactions through intermediaries.
One of those intermediaries, Florencio “Lencho” Rendon, a longtime associate of Cuellar, has already pleaded guilty to money laundering. So has Colin Strother, Cuellar’s former chief of staff and campaign manager, who prosecutors say funneled monthly payments to Cuellar’s wife.
Prosecutors claim the payments began in 2014, shortly after Cuellar’s trip to Azerbaijan. In text messages and emails, Cuellar allegedly communicated directly with Elin Suleymanov, then Azerbaijan’s ambassador to the U.S., discussing contracts, payments, and legislation favorable to the country.
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