U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, began presenting his defense in his bribery and extortion trial Monday by calling his own sister and then his sister-in-law to the witness stand.

While prosecutors have argued that the gold bars and envelopes of cash found in Menendez’s house show that he accepted bribes, Caridad Gonzalez, 80, said she did not find it unusual that her “baby brother” had significant amounts of cash in his house.