In 2013, U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar and his wife took what seemed like a routine trip to Turkey and Azerbaijan — paid for by an obscure Houston-based nonprofit. Federal prosecutors now allege that what followed was a years-long scheme of foreign influence, money laundering, and one of the most serious indictments ever brought against a sitting member of Congress.
A federal indictment unsealed last week alleges that Cuellar and his wife accepted nearly $600,000 in bribes from two foreign entities: Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil company, SOCAR, and Mexico’s Banco Azteca. Prosecutors allege that Cuellar, a Democrat from Laredo, Texas, used his office to advance the interests of these entities in exchange for payments disguised as consulting fees funneled through shell companies owned by his wife.
The indictment accuses Cuellar of acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government—a rare charge that was previously brought against Senator Bob Menendez in 2023 for allegedly working on behalf of Egypt.
The Cuellars allegedly funneled money through front companies, spent it on luxury items—including a $12,000 gown and lavish restaurant bills—and concealed the transactions through intermediaries.
One of those intermediaries, Florencio ‘Lencho’ Rendon, a longtime associate of Cuellar, has already pleaded guilty to money laundering. Colin Strother, Cuellar’s former chief of staff and campaign manager, has also pleaded guilty; prosecutors say he funneled monthly payments to Cuellar’s wife.
Prosecutors claim the payments began in 2014, shortly after Cuellar’s trip to Azerbaijan. In text messages and emails, Cuellar allegedly communicated directly with Elin Suleymanov, then Azerbaijan’s ambassador to the U.S., discussing contracts, payments, and legislation favorable to Azerbaijan.
One ‘consulting contract’ paid $20,000 a month through 2019 to companies owned by Cuellar’s wife, though prosecutors say she performed ‘little or no legitimate work.’
Cuellar, who has long portrayed himself as a champion of U.S.-Mexico relations and border trade, also allegedly pushed policies favorable to Banco Azteca, a Mexican bank. The indictment describes a separate deal in which the bank agreed to pay Cuellar’s wife $12,000 a month, plus bonuses totaling up to $500,000, to help navigate U.S. regulations.
Cuellar is accused of using his office to weaken anti-money laundering policies and provide insider updates to bank executives, even texting them for input on federal legislation. To disguise the schemes, Cuellar reportedly used middlemen and added layers of separation. He allegedly instructed Rendon to pay off a Mexican official who helped broker the bank deal.
At one point, Rendon paid the official up to $9,000 in cash stored at a Mexican law firm. When the deals drew attention in 2022, the FBI raided Cuellar’s home in Laredo, Texas.
Cuellar has pleaded not guilty and issued a defiant statement calling the indictment politically motivated. His lawyer dismissed the charges as ‘fiction,’ while Cuellar insisted his actions were ‘consistent with the actions of many of my colleagues.’
Among those named in the filings are top officials from the Azerbaijani government, executives from Banco Azteca, and even Cuellar’s adult child, whom the congressman allegedly tried to involve in a similar scheme.
The payments were routed through shell companies, U.S. affiliates, and a media subsidiary of the Mexican conglomerate Grupo Salinas, which owns both Banco Azteca and TV Azteca.
So far, Democrats in Congress have withheld judgment. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries described Cuellar as a ‘valued member’ entitled to the presumption of innocence. Cuellar has stepped down from his subcommittee leadership post, as required by caucus rules.
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