Former U.S. senator Bob Menendez begins serving 11-year bribery sentence

NEW YORK, June 17 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat having been mocked for the crimes as "Gold Bar Bob," arrived at a federal prison on Tuesday to begin serving an 11-year sentence for accepting bribes of gold and cash and acting as an agent of Egypt.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons confirmed that Menendez was in custody at the Federal Correctional Institution, Schuylkill in Minersville, Pennsylvania. The facility has a medium-security prison and a minimum-security prison camp. "Given the white-collar nature of his crimes, it's likely he'll end up in the camp," reported The Associated Press about the development.

Menendez resigned last year after he was convicted of selling his clout for bribes. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents found 480,000 U.S. dollars in cash in his home, some of it stuffed inside boots and jacket pockets, along with gold bars worth an estimated 150,000 dollars and a luxury convertible in the garage.

In exchange, prosecutors said, Menendez performed corrupt favors for New Jersey business owners, including protecting them from criminal investigations, helping in business deals with foreign powers and meeting with Egyptian intelligence officials before helping Egypt access 300 million dollars in U.S. military aid.