Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández released from US prison following pardon by Trump

Juan Orlando Hernndez, the ex-president of Honduras, has been released from a federal prison in the United States after receiving a pardon from President Donald Trump for drug-related offenses, according to official federal inmate records. Hernndez was freed on Monday from USP Hazelton, a high-security prison in West Virginia.

In March 2024, Hernndez was convicted of conspiracy to import cocaine into the US and illegal possession of machine guns. He had been sentenced to 45 years in prison. In a social media post announcing the pardon, Trump claimed that Hernndez had been "treated very harshly and unfairly."

Hernndez, affiliated with Honduras's National Party, served as the country's president from 2014 to 2022. He was extradited to the United States in April 2022 to face charges related to running a violent drug trafficking network and facilitating the shipment of hundreds of tons of cocaine to the US. During the trial, prosecutors described his administration as operating like a "narco-state" and accused him of accepting millions of dollars in bribes from drug traffickers to protect them from law enforcement.

As part of his sentence, Hernndez was also required to pay an $8 million fine. His release comes amid a closely contested Honduran presidential election, where right-wing candidate Nasry Asfura trails by just 515 votes behind his nearest rival, former TV host Salvador Nasralla, representing the centrist party.

Author: Sophia Brooks