Texas congressman Henry Cuellar asserts innocence amid reports of indictment

Democratic congressman Henry Cuellar on Friday said he was “innocent of these allegations” amid reports that the US Department of Justice would imminently announce his indictment.

“I want to be clear that both my wife and I are innocent of these allegations. Everything I have done in Congress has been to serve the people of South Texas,” Cuellar said in a statement that did not elaborate on what he was accused of.

He added that “I’m running for re-election and will win this November,” when Democrats are hoping to regain the majority in the House of Representatives.

His comments came after NBC News, citing two unnamed sources, reported federal charges would soon be leveled against the lawmaker, who has represented a swath of Texas’s border with Mexico in Congress’s lower chamber since 2005. It was not clear what Cuellar was being charged with.

Two years ago, the FBI raided Cuellar’s Laredo, Texas, home and campaign office as part of an investigation into US businessmen and links with Azerbaijan. It was unclear if the expected indictment was related to that search.

More details soon …