WASHINGTON, Dec 3 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he was granting a “full and unconditional pardon” to Democratic House Representative Henry Cuellar of Texas, and his wife Imelda, who were charged with bribery.

Last year, Cuellar and his wife were indicted for allegedly accepting close to $600,000 in bribes in two schemes meant to benefit an Azerbaijani state-owned energy company and an unnamed bank based in Mexico.

He has maintained his innocence and that of his wife.

Cuellar, first elected to the House in 2004, is a moderate Democrat who has fended off recent primary challenges from more progressive candidates in the party.

(Reporting by Katharine Jackson, Ryan Patrick Jones and Richard Cowan; Editing by Caitlin Webber and Franklin Paul)

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