On May 3, US Representative Henry Cuellar and his wife, Imelda, faced charges involving two separate bribery schemes linked to the government of Azerbaijan and a Mexican bank. 

The indictment detailed that from December 2014 to November 2021, the couple allegedly accepted bribes totaling $600,000. Following the charges, the couple surrendered to authorities and was subsequently detained, as confirmed by the US Department of Justice on Friday.

The legal documents accuse the Cuellars of laundering the bribe money through a company owned by Imelda Cuellar and their two children, using fraudulent consulting contracts to disguise the payments. According to the indictment, the company received $25,000 monthly. In exchange, Henry Cuellar allegedly leveraged his position to manipulate US foreign policy to benefit Azerbaijan and interfered with anti-money laundering policies to aid the operations of the implicated bank. The indictment includes an instance where Imelda Cuellar reportedly sent a falsified invoice to the Azerbaijan Energy Company's office in Washington, claiming completion of contracted work. The indictment stated, "In fact, this contract was a fraud used to cover up and legitimize a corrupt contract between Henry Cuellar and the government of Azerbaijan." 

Prior to the indictment's public release, Cuellar had denied the allegations. "I want to make it clear that both my wife and I are innocent of these allegations," Cuellar, a Democrat from Texas, stated. He also noted that he had consulted the House Ethics Committee and received multiple written opinions confirming his actions were compliant and additional advice from a law firm. Cuellar added, "Furthermore, we requested a meeting with Washington prosecutors and called to explain the facts. They refused to discuss the case with us and listen to our side." 

Notably, Henry Cuellar had served as the co-chairman of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus before these charges were brought against him.