Ex-Honduran President Hernandez Sentenced to 45 Years in U.S. Prison for Drug Trafficking, Firearms Offenses, and Fined $8 Million

Jun 26, 2024, 06:24 PM

Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez has been sentenced to 45 years in a U.S. prison for his involvement in a large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy and related firearms offenses. Hernandez, 55, was convicted in March for conspiring with drug traffickers to send hundreds of tons of cocaine to the United States over an 18-year period. The sentencing took place in New York on June 26, where Judge P. Kevin Castel also fined Hernandez $8 million. Despite his pleas for leniency and maintaining his innocence during the sentencing, the court found him guilty of accepting millions of dollars in bribes to protect cocaine shipments. His sentence aligns him with his brother, Tony Hernandez, who is also serving a lengthy prison term for similar offenses.