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WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 30: U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) speaks on southern border security and illegal immigration, during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on July 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. Cuellar urged the Biden administration to name forme

WASHINGTON – Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife have been pardoned of federal bribery and conspiracy charges by President Donald Trump. 

Trump announced the pardon on his social media website along with a letter from the Cuellar’s daughters requesting the couple’s clemency. 

Trump pardons Cuellar

What we know:

The Cuellars were accused of federal charges of bribery and conspiracy, which were imposed during the Biden administration. 

Trump, a Republican, accused Biden of targeting the Democrats “simply for speaking the TRUTH.” He claimed the pair criticized Biden’s border policy, prompting Biden to levy unfair charges. 

Henry Cuellar, 69, and his wife, Imelda, were accused of accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes from an Azerbaijan-controlled energy company and a bank in Mexico. In exchange, Cuellar allegedly agreed to advance the interests of the country and the bank in the U.S., according to the indictment.

The Cuellars have maintained their innocence since the allegations were made in 2024. The couple’s trial had been set to begin next April.

Along with his Truth Social post, Trump attached a letter apparently from the Cuellars’ daughters, requesting the representative and his wife be cleared of their charges. 

Texas Rep. Cuellar indicted

The backstory:

The Cuellars were indicted and taken into custody in May 2024 in connection with a U.S. Department of Justice probe into ties between American business leaders and the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan.

Among other things, Cuellar was accused of agreeing to influence legislation favorable to Azerbaijan and deliver a pro-Azerbaijan speech on the floor of the U.S. House.

“Everything I have done in Congress has been to serve the people of South Texas,” Cuellar said. “Before I took action, I proactively sought legal advice from the House Ethics Committee, who gave me more than one written opinion, along with an additional opinion from a national law firm.

The payments to the couple went through a Texas-based shell company owned by Imelda Cuellar and two of the couple’s children, according to the indictment. That company received payments from the Azerbaijan energy company of $25,000 per month under a “sham contract,” purportedly in exchange for unspecified strategic consulting and advising services.

Cuellar was at one time the co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus.

Who is Rep. Cuellar?

Dig deeper:

Enrique Roberto “Henry” Cuellar has served as a U.S. Representative since 2004 in Texas District 28, which stretches south from San Antonio to Laredo. 

Cuellar served in the Texas House from 1987 to 2001, along with a short stint as Texas secretary of state in 2001. He is the most recent Democrat to serve in a statewide political position in Texas. 

The Source: Information in this report comes from President Donald Trump on Truth Social. 

TexasPoliticsCrime and Public SafetyDonald J. Trump