WASHINGTON

A federal judge on Thursday sentenced Nadine Menendez, the wife of former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, to 54 months in prison for her role in a bribery scheme, according to reports.

According to CBS News, US District Judge Sidney Stein also ordered three years of supervised release and a $1,400 fine, while setting July 10, 2026 as the surrender date to begin serving her sentence.

Stein told Menendez that she was a “central participant” in a conspiracy that corrupted one of the Senate’s most powerful members, The Washington Post reported.

“You were a central participant in a wide-ranging extensive conspiracy involving the corruption of one of the highest-ranking United States senators, the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,” Stein reportedly said. “You set up meetings. You initiated actions. You involved others. You knew what you were doing throughout.”

Menendez, 58, tearfully addressed the court, describing her husband as her “savior” after an abusive marriage and saying she “blindly” followed his lead, according to the Post.

Prosecutors sought at least seven years, but her lawyers urged leniency, citing her ongoing cancer treatment and failed surgeries.

She was convicted in April of accepting cash, gold bars, and luxury gifts. Bob Menendez, a Democrat who once chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, resigned after his own conviction and is serving an 11-year sentence.