US judge sentences Honduran ex-president to 45 years for drug trafficking

Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez was sentenced Wednesday in New York to 45 years in U.S. prison for aiding drug traffickers who used the Honduran military and national police forces to transport large amounts of cocaine into the United States.

Hernandez, 55, governed Honduras, a U.S. ally in Central America, from 2014 to 2022, serving two terms.

He was arrested at his home in the capital, Tegucigalpa, three months after leaving office in 2022 and was extradited to the U.S. in April of that year.

His brother, Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernandez, was sentenced to life in prison in 2021 on similar drug-related charges.

Prosecutors alleged that Hernandez had colluded with drug traffickers since 2004, accepting millions of dollars in bribes. They argued for a life sentence, saying it would deter other traffickers and corrupt officials.

"Hernandez did more to combat drug trafficking in Honduras than any president before or since," said his lawyer, Renato Stabile, who sought a maximum sentence of 40 years and indicated Hernandez would appeal.

During the trial in Manhattan federal court, Hernandez admitted drug money had permeated all major political parties in Honduras but denied personally accepting bribes. The jury convicted him in March based on evidence that he used drug money to manipulate elections in 2013 and 2017.

Hernandez maintained his innocence, attributing the charges to revenge by convicted traffickers opposed to his anti-drug policies.

Judge P. Kevin Castel also fined him $8 million. Castel called the former president a "two-faced politician hungry for power" and said he protected certain traffickers.

Hernandez criticized the trial's fairness and claimed critical evidence was excluded.

"It's as if I had been thrown into a deep river with my hands bound," Hernandez said through an interpreter.