A Honduran judge ruled Wednesday that former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández can be extradited to the U.S. to face drug trafficking-related charges.
The Honduran Supreme Court of Justice, a member of the country’s highest judicial authority, granted the U.S. extradition request for the former president after U.S. prosecutors in the Southern District of New York accused Hernández of funding his political campaigns with money from the cartels, the Associated Press reported.
Former First Lady Ana García reportedly maintained her husband’s innocence while leaving the court, telling local reporters that she knows her husband worked against the cartels, not for them. (RELATED: Police Arrest Former Honduran President After US Extradition Request)
BREAKING: Former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández should be extradited to the United States on drug trafficking and weapons charges, a judge rules. https://t.co/F4SKxY3W0r
— The Associated Press (@AP) March 17, 2022
“I regret that this happens to someone who has been an ally,” García said of her husband’s close relationship with the United States government, according to the AP. “I ask myself, from this point on, who else will want to work to combat drug trafficking in any country of the region or Honduras. If today they do this to the one who put himself out there, what can we expect?”
Iván Martínez, representing Hernández, reportedly confirmed the team would make the case to keep Hernández in the country, but said the appeals process only gives a short time to file. “We still have an appeal that must be examined,” said Martínez, according to the AP. “We have three days to analyze the decision taken today and make out a case in line with law.”
Hernández was arrested on Feb. 15 on charges that he participated in a drug-trafficking scheme where he would help protect shipments of cocaine from Columbia and Venezuela heading to the U.S., according to Reuters.
Hernández posted a video to his Twitter in response to his arrest and possible extradition to the U.S.
— Juan Orlando H. (@JuanOrlandoH) February 15, 2022
“I am ready to collaborate and voluntarily arrive with their accompaniment at the moment that the natural judge appointed by the honorable Supreme Court of Justice decides it,” Hernández said, according to a CNN translation. “To be able to face this situation and defend myself.”
U.S. Embassy documents show Hernández received millions of dollars in bribes from drug traffickers to protect them from investigations and prosecutions, Reuters reported.
Honduran security minister Ramon Sabillon congratulated Hernández’s arrest as a “historic,” Reuters reported. “The government has shown that it has the determination to comply with the law,” Sabillon said, according to the outlet.
Hernández’s brother, former Honduran congressman Tony Hernández was sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years in 2021 for drug trafficking, Reuters reported.