Convicted ex-New Jersey Sen. “Gold Bar Bob’’ Menendez was a no-show for the start of his wife’s bribery trial Monday — even though a judge delayed his prison stint so he could “assist” her during her case.

At former Sen. Bob Menendez’s corruption trial last year, his defense team cast him as an unwitting pawn in a global bribery scheme orchestrated by his wife, Nadine Menendez, that netted the couple nearly $1 million in gold bars, cash, and other valuables.

Nadine Menendez did the “dirty work” to get gold bars, envelopes stuffed with cash and a new Mercedes-Benz convertible for herself and her husband, now-convicted former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, federal prosecutors said during opening statements in her criminal trial Monday.