A convicted Mafioso was given a “swank” free house and restaurant meals by the businessman who is suspected of bribing New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez with gold bars, according to an official investigation – according to which tens of thousands of dollars were also given to the family of a mafia member.
In September, Fred Daibes was charged with obtaining gold in exchange for favors from the senator who was indicted, allegedly included attempting to sabotage a different case.
When the FBI raided Menendez’s house in Englewood, New Jersey, they found the bars along with coats that were packed with cash, which the senator claims he saved because he was afraid the government would seize his assets.
The New Jersey State Commission of Investigation conducted a thorough investigation into Daibes, a 66-year-old developer, about corruption in his hometown of Edgewater, NJ prior to the indictment. According to the May report, he had amassed “outsized power” and was giving money to Edgewater’s elected officials in exchange for contracts and influence. When questioned about them, Daibes invoked the Fifth Amendment. He had allegedly written personal checks totaling more than $100,000 to “the son and daughter-in-law of a high-ranking Genovese organized crime family member who was a key operative in an illegal gambling ring in northern New Jersey in the 2000s.”
According to the investigation, another Genovese acquaintance spent nine years living rent-free in one of Daibes’ apartment complexes. Daibes continued to pay the man’s rent for an additional four years after selling the building, while also allegedly receiving complimentary dining at Dabies’ restaurant.
The report disclosed that Richard Fischetti, the gangster who received a free house, was also wed to Duane Fischetti, a town council member, whose son held the position of Borough Attorney. Fischetti stated in her testimony that the pair had spent decades apart.
In a letter to the committee from his lawyer, Daibes refuted accusations of corruption and said that the felon with ties to Genoa who was given free lodging was a buddy in need of a second chance at life after completing his sentence and was divorced from his politico wife.
As per the committee, Daibes virtually single-handedly turned Edgewater, situated on the Hudson River, into an opulent community for Manhattan commuters by constructing riverside high-rises throughout the last two decades, whereupon the Genovese associate was given a free residence. However, the study said that he achieved this by rewarding local officials who carried out his orders and punished those who disobeyed him. During the trip, he gave his construction company’s employees an 18-month cash payment schedule.
Daibes was indicted in 2018 on allegations of bank fraud in addition to the Menendez case. He provided the senator gold bars, according to the prosecution, in an attempt to persuade Menendez to assist him in that particular instance.
Menendez and his spouse are also charged with obtaining money and an opulent vehicle in exchange for serving as unregistered Egyptian foreign agents and assisting Wael “Will” Hana and Jose Uribe, charges they refute. Furthermore, both guys refute all accusations.
