Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas and his wife are indicted over ties to Azerbaijan

Rep. Henry Cuellar has denied any wrongdoing related to federal charges that he and his wife accepted $600,000 in bribes. Democratic U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas and his wife were indicted on conspiracy and bribery charges and taken into custody Friday in connection with a U.S. Department of Justice probe into ties between American business leaders and the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan. The indictment accuses Cuellar, 68, and wife Imelda Cuellar of accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes from an Azerbaijan-controlled energy company and a bank in Mexico from 2014 to 2021, in exchange for Rep. Cuellar advancing the interests of the country and the bank in the U.S. Cuellar agreed to influence matters including legislation favorable to Azerbaijan and to deliver a pro-Azerbaijan speech on the floor of the U.S. House, the indictment alleges. The longtime congressman released a statement Friday saying he and his wife “are innocent of these allegations.” “Everything I have done in Congress has been to serve the people of south Texas,” Cuellar said. The indictment also alleges that an Azerbaijani diplomat referred to Rep. Cuellar in text messages as “el Jefe,” or “Boss,” and that a member of Cuellar’s staff sent multiple emails to U.S. State Department officials pressuring them to renew a U.S. passport for an Azerbaijani diplomat’s daughter.