Bob Menendez, 70 years old, an unusually intelligent child of refugees from Fidel Castro’s Cuba, who grew up in poverty in Union City, NJ, where he was later elected mayor in 1986, reached the highest levels of power in the U.S. as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

It is an incredible success story that embodies the best version of the American dream. Yet, something went wrong within him, as recent tragic events show. He failed the character test, the most important test of life. That’s why his fall from the pinnacle he had reached to where he is today is so crushing and irrevocable.

The jury’s guilty verdict, after 13 hours of deliberation, is one of the worst in Senate history. Menendez was convicted of 16 crimes on charges that he ‘sold’ his position to Egypt, Qatar, and businessmen from his home state of New Jersey for hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash ($460,000), gold bars, and a Mercedes-Benz convertible.

In statements after his conviction, he said: “I have never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country… I have never, ever been a foreign agent.”

The judge will decide in October on the sentence, which could send him to prison for many years. Menendez, of course, will have a chance to appeal. In a recent statement, he said he plans to appeal his guilty verdict “all the way” to the Supreme Court, if necessary.

For us, Menendez’s case is a ‘family’ matter, which is why the court’s decision literally shocked us. It’s not easy to accept that Bob Menendez committed the crimes for which he was convicted.
It’s a family matter because we knew him personally due to his unprecedented support for Greece and Cyprus. Bob Menendez embraced us and we embraced him. As a Cuban American, he understood and passionately and accurately expressed his abhorrence for the illegal invasion and occupation of Cyprus by the Turks and the threats Turkey makes towards Greece.

During his trial, we held onto hope. But now the court has spoken. The jury concluded that he is guilty of committing very serious crimes. Now, we wait for the appeal.

It’s difficult to accept. But we have no choice. We thank him for his friendship and support and wish him all the best in his life, if possible.

However, now, out of necessity, our paths diverge.