WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lawyers for the U.S. Justice Department on Monday filed a stinging rebuke to U.S. Senator Robert Menendez's bid to have political corruption charges against him dismissed.
Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat and former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was indicted in April for bribery, accused of accepting up to $1 million worth of lavish gifts from Salomon Melgen, a Florida ophthalmologist, in exchange for political favors.
The two men, who are close friends, pleaded not guilty in April to the charges. Menendez was released without bail and Melgen was released on $1.5 million bond.
In pretrial motions both men sought to have the case against them dismissed and alleged misconduct in the investigation by U.S. prosecutors.
This was given short shrift by U.S. prosecutors in their own 65-page filing.
"The defendants' motions are replete with so many factual inaccuracies and material misrepresentations that it is difficult to dismiss them as simply inadvertent," lawyers for the U.S. government wrote.
"Perhaps most troubling, the defendants accuse the government of concealing evidence from the grand jury, while themselves concealing from the court evidence material to their allegations."
Menendez attorney Abbe David Lowell, and Kirk Ogrosky, who represents Melgen, issued a joint statement saying they would file a response to the prosecutors on Sept. 14.
"We stand behind the motions and remain confident that both defendants will be vindicated," they said.