New York – A U.S. judge sentenced former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández to 45 years in prison and imposed an $8 million fine for running a “narco-state” that facilitated the trafficking of South American cocaine to the United States on Wednesday.
During Hernández’s two terms as president from 2014 to 2022, he allegedly accepted millions of dollars in bribes from traffickers in Honduras and Mexico, according to U.S. prosecutors. It is reported that he played a key role in the transportation of at least 400 tons of cocaine to the United States while shielding traffickers from extradition and prosecution.
Judge Kevin Castel highlighted the magnitude of the trafficking scheme before delivering the sentence, stating that the cocaine had a street value of over $10 billion and that participants who cooperated against Hernández confessed to more than 130 murders. Hernández was accused of presenting himself as a “champion” against drug trafficking while actively enabling violence, disease, and addiction.
Prosecutors had originally requested a life sentence plus an additional 30 years for Hernández. Despite his denial of any criminal activity, the former president was found guilty of federal drug and weapons charges in March. Hernández has since announced plans to appeal the conviction.
The case has raised doubts about the U.S. government’s awareness of Hernández’s illicit actions as they sought his collaboration in curbing migration along the southwest border. Former U.S. diplomats have refuted this claim, arguing that the State Department officials were unaware of the Justice Department’s investigation into Hernández.
Hernández continued to proclaim his innocence during the sentencing, insisting that he was wrongly accused and convicted. His attorney had requested a 40-year sentence, the mandatory minimum, prior to the court hearing. Throughout his time in office, Hernández’s conservative National Party faced scandals involving corruption and drug trafficking, eventually leading to their loss of presidency in 2021 to Xiomara Castro, the wife of former leftist president Mel Zelaya.
