Honduras ex-president convicted of aiding drug cartels

A US court on Friday found former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez guilty of colluding with drug cartels and facilitating the smuggling of hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States.

After a trial that lasted two weeks, the 12-member jury declared a unanimous verdict convicting Hernandez.

What are the charges against Hernandez?

Hernandez was found guilty in each of the three charges against him, including: plotting to import cocaine, illegal use and carrying of machine guns, and possessing machine guns as part of a "cocaine-importation conspiracy."

He could face sentences of up to life imprisonment, according to US prosecutors who say Hernandez turned his country into a "narco-state" during his tenure in 2014-2022.

The sentences will be delivered on June 26.

 "I am innocent, tell the world," he told his friends and family as he left the courtroom.

Fall from grace

Hernandez, who was once a US ally, was first accused of conspiring with drug traffickers in 2004 — long before his presidency.

During his presidency, which ran from 2014 to 2022, Honduras received more than $50 million (€45.6 million) as US anti-narcotics aid and tens of millions of dollars in security and military aid.

But the court said Hernandez abused his power and accepted bribes to facilitate drug smuggling which helped him in his political campaigning.

"Juan Orlando Hernandez abused his position as President of Honduras to operate the country as a narco-state where violent drug traffickers were allowed to operate with virtual impunity, and the people of Honduras and the United States were forced to suffer the consequences," US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement after the verdict.

Prosecutors also linked Hernandez with the Sinaloa drug cartel which at the time was headed by infamous Mexican drug trafficker Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

During the trial, Hernandez admitted that the bribes were used to pay political parties in Honduras but denied accepting the bribes himself.

mfi/wd (Reuters, AP, AFP)