Prosecutors said they orchestrated a scheme in which Melgen gave Menendez gifts and campaign donations in exchange for Menendez's political influence. "We are preparing a general letter of support from you," Lopes emailed to Menendez and asked if it was OK to send it. There was "nothing improper," Lopes testified, in Menendez's efforts on behalf of another friend of Melgen's, a Brazilian national characterized in the indictment as one of Melgen's girlfriends. Earlier Monday, a vice president for American Express testified Melgen used about 650,000 AmEx points to pay for a Paris hotel room for Menendez in 2010. The most serious charge Menendez and Melgen each face, honest services fraud, carries a maximum 20-year sentence.

Source: ABC News September 11, 2017 14:11 UTC