 | Información Narcotáfico |
04abr21 - vi) msjes. | |
| Hnd - Condenado a cadena perpetua Juan Hernández Alvarado Hermano del presidente JOH. |
i) Condenado a cadena perpetua "Tony" Hernández. Juan Antonio 'Tony' Hernández, ex diputado y hermano del presidente de Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández, fue sentenciado a cadena perpetua más 30 años de prisión. La sentencia fue dictada por el juez Kevin Castell. "Tony" Hernández había sido declarado culpable en octubre de 2019 por los delitos de tráfico de drogas y cargos relacionados con armas. Con la sentencia de hoy martes se pone punto final a un juicio que implicó al presidente Juan Orlando Hernández como co-conspirador de una supuesta trama en la que recibió millones en sobornos de narcotraficantes. El mandatario hondureño no ha sido acusado. El caso de "Tony" Hernández se convirtió en el más sonado no sólo por haber develado los más grandes nexos entre los narcotraficantes y el Estado hondureño, sobre todo la participación de Juan Orlando Hernández en varios actos del mundo del narcotráfico. Previo a dictar la sentencia, el Juez Kevin Castell dijo que el acusado (Tony Hernández) abusó de una posición de confianza pública ya que al tener el cargo de diputado le dio mayor injerencia y a todos los participaron con él en el negocio del narcotráfico. "Se reunió con agentes de la DEA en 2016, confiado de que la DEA no se atrevería a tocar a un congresista electo», dice el Juez Castell. Cuando Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernández hizo uso de la palabra, manifestó sentirse engañado por su abogado Peter E. Brill del que se quejó por no defender sus intereses ante la justicia norteamericana. "No estoy satisfecho con el Sr. Brill. Solo me visitó dos veces. Hoy es la primera vez que hablo con mis abogados sobre los asuntos materiales de Brady. Mi carta era para preguntar. Yo también soy abogado y conozco la regla 5F de Estados Unidos. Mi sorpresa es que supe por un medio que me condenarían el 30", dice "Tony" Hernández al Juez Castell. Aseguró que escribió una carta al Juez para solicitar cambio de abogado ya que dijo sentirse engañado. "Yo asumía que mi abogado estaba trabajando», manifestó el condenado. Dijo que es difícil contar con un abogado del que no sabe que otros compromisos tiene. «Dejó en público las cartas de mis familiares, cuando podrían haber sido selladas. Su intención, no lo sé», se quejó Hernández. Por su parte el Juez le respondió. "En su caso, no he visto nada, nada en absoluto, que refleje una violación de los derechos de Brady o Giglio», dice el Juez Kevin Castell que también dijo que le pidieron que pospusiera la sentencia para llevarla a cabo en una sala de audiencias. "Esto es raro nunca lo he visto», dijo el Juez Kevin Castell. Los representantes de la Fiscalía de los Estados Unidos, la parte acusadora, manifestaron que las declaraciones hechas por "Tony" Hernández son impresionantes ya que dedicó el tiempo que el Juez le dio para quejarse de sus abogados y no para arrepentirse de lo que había cometido. «Es una figura central ("Tony" Hernández) en una de las conspiraciones de drogas más violentas del mundo, en un narco estado», dijo la fiscalía mientras lo señalaba de haber conspirado junto a su hermano, presidente de Honduras, lo que provocó brutales actos de violencia. «Canalizó dinero de la droga hacia campañas del Partido Nacional a cambio de promesas de protección a los narcotraficantes», insistió la fiscalía. El presidente de Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández, ha negado de manera reiterada, todas las acusaciones de vínculos con los narcotraficantes, diciendo recientemente que los capos encontraron una «llave mágica» para reducir sus penas de prisión diciendo mentiras contra él. [Fuente: Radio Progreso, Yoro, Hnd, 30mar21]ii) Sentencia contra "Tony" Hernández remarca la falta de la independencia de poderes en Honduras. Tremendo revuelo ha causado en Honduras la sentencia de cadena perpetua contra el narcotraficante hondureño Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernández. De acuerdo a las investigaciones de la Fiscalía de Nueva York, el narcotraficante Hernández transportó 185,000 kilos de cocaína a Estados Unidos. Para el abogado constitucionalista Oliver Erazo, el caso del ex congresista remarca que la independencia de poderes en Honduras no existe. "Hay una cuestión que no debemos desconocer y debemos de ser valientes en señalar: aquí hay una cuarta columna de poder y que todo mundo lo está viendo y no quieren aceptarlo. Los tres poderes del Estado formales han llegado por un cuarto poder y ese cuarto poder es el dinero del crimen organizado que ha nutrido al sistema de partidos y que ha llevado al poder a la gente que hoy está", dijo Erazo. El abogado penalista Marco Antonio Zelaya lamentó que personas que hayan participado en hechos contrarios a la ley sean juzgados en otro país, acción que conlleva a la pérdida de la independencia judicial. "Nosotros creemos que tenemos un sistema suficientemente capaz, con un personal comprometido con el país, con la justicia, con la sociedad hondureña para poder enfrentar cualquier situación ya sea igual o peor a la que estamos viendo en Nueva York con ciudadanos hondureños que fueron solicitados en extradición para ser juzgados en otro país", sostuvo Zelaya. Para el analista político y miembro del Partido Nacional, Raúl Pineda Alvarado, el juicio contra "Tony" Hernández reveló que los últimos presidentes que ha tenido Honduras han estado involucrados en el narcotráfico. "La vía de acercamiento a los grandes decisores son sus familiares cercanos, en el caso del ex presidente Porfirio Lobo fue su hijo Fabio y en el caso del presidente Hernández fue su hermano "Tony". Lo que queda es que la clase política vea como una lección de lo que les puede pasar por abusar del poder", manifestó Pineda. [Fuente: Radio Progreso, Yoro, Hnd, 31mar21]iii) Sentencia contra "Tony" abre escenario a un posible juicio contra JOH. El narcotraficante Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernández, ex diputado y hermano del mandatario Juan Orlando Hernández, fue sentenciado a cadena perpetua más 30 años de prisión, por el juez Kevin Castell, en la Corte del Distrito Sur de Nueva York. Tony Hernández, en octubre de 2019, fue encontrado culpable por los delitos de conspirar para importar cocaína, posesión de armas y dispositivos destructivos, conspirar para posesión de armas y falso testimonio. El abogado Omar Menjivar dijo en Radio Progreso que, con la sentencia de Tony hay que reflexionar sobre el papel de la institucionalidad hondureña, pues durante la sentencia, nuevamente el Juez Castell mencionó al gobernante hondureño Juan Orlando Hernández, como socio de su hermano. Menjivar señaló que la sentencia, es un claro mensaje del escenario que próximamente vivirá JOH por lo que explicó que en el actual contexto es urgente la organización y movilización de la ciudadanía. Por su parte, el abogado y doctor en Derechos Humanos, Joaquín Mejía, del Equipo de Reflexión, Investigación y Comunicación, Eric-sj, aseguró que la sentencia contra "Tony" Hernández, tiene dos dimensiones: una dimensión material porque es condenado a cadena perpetua y JOH queda señalado directamente como un narcotraficante, como uno de los más grandes delincuentes del país. Pero también una dimensión simbólica porque refleja el fracaso del sistema de seguridad y justicia, ya que ni las Fuerzas Armadas ni la Policía Nacional ni el Ministerio Público ni el Poder Judicial han sido capaces o han querido investigar y sancionar las actividades de narcotráfico. El sacerdote jesuita Ismael Moreno, Padre Melo, Director del ERIC-SJ, manifestó que la sentencia contra Tony Hernández deja un "sabor agridulce" porque tuvo que ser Estados Unidos el encargado de aplicar la justicia a funcionarios narcotraficantes ya que en Honduras la institucionalidad está secuestrada por el crimen organizado que lidera Juan Orlando Hernández. El Padre Melo cree que el reinado de Juan Orlando estaría llegando a su final, pero le toca a la ciudadanía realizar acciones de protesta o presión para lograr su fin. Un fin que podría tener un desenlace violento por la peligrosidad de JOH, por lo que toca estar alerta y en constante movilización. [Fuente: Radio Progreso, Yoro, Hnd, 31mar21]iv) Former Honduran Congressman Tony Hernández Sentenced To Life In Prison. Former Honduran Congressman Tony Hernández Sentenced To Life In Prison And Ordered To Forfeit $138.5 Million For Distributing 185 Tons Of Cocaine And Related Firearms And False Statements Offenses Hernández Participated in the Importation of At Least 185,000 Kilograms of Cocaine; Secured Millions of Dollars in Bribes to Honduran Officials; Used Heavily Armed Security Including Members of the Honduran Military and National Police; and Coordinated Tw Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Wendy C. Woolcock, the Special Agent in Charge of the Special Operations Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration ("DEA"), announced today that JUAN ANTONIO HERNÁNDEZ ALVARADO, a/k/a "Tony Hernández" ("HERNÁNDEZ") was sentenced to life in prison for cocaine-importation, weapons, and false-statements offenses. HERNÁNDEZ is a former Honduran congressman and the brother of Juan Orlando Hernández, the current president of Honduras. HERNÁNDEZ was convicted on October 18, 2019, following a jury trial before U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel, who also imposed today's sentence. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: "Former Honduran congressman Juan Antonio Hernández Alvarado was involved in all stages of the trafficking through Honduras of multi-ton loads of cocaine destined for the U.S. Hernández bribed law enforcement officials to protect drug shipments, arranged for heavily armed security for cocaine shipments, and brokered large bribes from major drug traffickers to powerful political figures, including the former and current presidents of Honduras. Hernández was complicit in at least two murders. Today, Tony Hernández was rightly sentenced to life in prison." Special Agent in Charge Wendy C. Woolcock said: "Exploiting a high-ranking position in government to wield the power of the state to support drug trafficking is as nefarious as it comes. The conviction and sentencing of Tony Hernandez is a reminder there is no position powerful enough to shield you from facing justice when you violate U.S. drug laws by sending tons of cocaine to our country. As important as this conviction is to the people of the United States, it is also important to the citizens of Honduras who Hernandez purposely put in harm's way for his own personal gain. Today's sentencing is a victory for the rule of law and we are grateful to our federal and international partners who made this possible." As reflected in the Superseding Indictment, other filings in Manhattan federal court, evidence at trial, and statements made in court proceedings: HERNÁNDEZ played a leadership role in a violent, state-sponsored drug trafficking conspiracy. Over a 15-year period, HERNÁNDEZ manufactured and distributed at least 185,000 kilograms of cocaine that was imported into the United States. HERNÁNDEZ commanded heavily armed members of the Honduran military and Honduran National Police; he sold machineguns and ammunition to drug traffickers, some of which he obtained from the Honduran military; he controlled cocaine laboratories in Colombia and Honduras; he secured millions of dollars of drug proceeds for Honduras's National Party campaigns in connection with presidential elections in 2009, 2013, and 2017; and he helped cause at least two murders. HERNÁNDEZ made at least $138.5 million through his drug trafficking activities, money he was ordered to forfeit in connection with today's sentencing. Hernández's Drug Trafficking Conduct HERNÁNDEZ's drug trafficking career started in about 2004 when he began providing sensitive law enforcement and military information to major Honduran drug traffickers Victor Hugo Diaz Morales, a/k/a "El Rojo," and Hector Emilio Fernandez Rosa, a/k/a "Don H." HERNÁNDEZ provided Diaz Morales with information about, among other things, operations of the Honduran Navy; efforts by the United States to train Honduran Air Force pilots to fly at night to conduct anti-narcotics operations; military radar capabilities so that cocaine plane shipments could avoid detection; and interdiction efforts by certain Honduran National Police officials. Over the course of their relationship, HERNÁNDEZ helped Fernandez Rosa and Diaz Morales distribute approximately 140,000 kilograms of cocaine. By 2008, HERNÁNDEZ's narcotics trafficking had expanded, and he was also manufacturing his own cocaine in a laboratory he controlled near El Aceitico, Colombia. HERNÁNDEZ told his co-conspirators that some of the cocaine manufactured at his laboratory was stamped with his initials "TH," and a photograph of a kilogram of "TH" stamped cocaine was intercepted during the course of the investigation. HERNÁNDEZ supplied his co-conspirators with tons of cocaine that was produced at his laboratory. Beginning in about 2008, HERNÁNDEZ partnered with Amilcar Alexander Ardon Soriano, a former Honduran drug trafficker and mayor, under the protection of members of the National Party leadership. Testimony at trial established that HERNÁNDEZ and Ardon Soriano secured protection from investigation, arrest, and extradition through massive bribes paid to high-ranking politicians, including, among others, Porfirio "Pepe" Lobo Sosa and Juan Orlando Hernández. In connection with the 2009 national elections, drug proceed bribes paid in exchange for protection included: (i) Ardon Soriano paying $2 million to support Lobo Sosa's campaign for presidency and Juan Orlando Hernández's reelection campaign for a position in the Honduran congress; (ii) Diaz Morales paying $100,000 to HERNÁNDEZ to support National Party campaigns; and (iii) Ardon Soriano bribing three congressmen at the direction of Juan Orlando Hernández so that the congressmen would support Juan Orlando Hernández's efforts to become president of the congress. Juan Orlando Hernandez was named president of the congress in early 2010. HERNÁNDEZ, Ardon Soriano, and their co-conspirators, including co-defendant Mario Jose Calix Hernández, a Honduran deputy mayor, and codefendant Mauricio Hernández Pineda, a then-member of the Honduran National Police and HERNÁNDEZ's cousin, took advantage of National Party protection to continue transporting huge quantities of cocaine. Once or twice a month in 2010, HERNÁNDEZ sent Ardon Soriano cocaine shipments consisting of approximately 300 kilograms; and once a month in 2011 and 2012, HERNÁNDEZ sent Ardon Soriano maritime cocaine shipments ranging in size from 700 to 1,600 kilograms. In 2013, HERNÁNDEZ was campaigning to become a congressman and Juan Orlando Hernández was campaigning to become president. Around this time, according to testimony at trial, Juan Orlando Hernández solicited $1.6 million in drug proceeds from Ardon Soriano to support himself and National Party campaigns. Also during the 2013 campaign, HERNÁNDEZ accepted $1 million from former Sinaloa Cartel leader Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, a/k/a "Chapo," to support Juan Orlando Hernández's presidential campaign. During meetings with Chapo in Honduras, HERNÁNDEZ promised to provide protection for members of their conspiracy and their cocaine shipments through Honduran territory if Juan Orlando Hernández was elected president. In November 2013, HERNÁNDEZ was elected to the Honduran congress and Juan Orlando Hernández was elected president. Between 2015 and 2017, per trial testimony, HERNÁNDEZ and Juan Orlando Hernández continued to secure large sums of drug proceeds for National Party campaigns in exchange for protecting drug traffickers. For example, there was testimony at trial that approximately six months before the November 2017 national elections, HERNÁNDEZ and Juan Orlando Hernández met with Ardon Soriano in Copán, Honduras. During that meeting, HERNÁNDEZ and Juan Orlando Hernández solicited $500,000 and 1.6 million Lempira in drug proceeds from Ardon Soriano to "finance" the National Party's campaign in the Copán and Lempira Departments. In 2018, HERNÁNDEZ continued to engage in large cocaine shipments with Nery López Sanabria, another significant Honduran drug trafficker. Honduran authorities arrested and detained López Sanabria in connection with a traffic incident and recovered, among other things, several drug ledgers in a secret compartment of his car. One of the ledgers was labeled "Hard Work" 2018, and reflected a 650-kilogram cocaine shipment with HERNÁNDEZ. At least one of the other ledgers seized by Honduran law enforcement in 2018 contained references to "JOH," initials used by Juan Orlando Hernández. López Sanabria was murdered in a Honduran prison, as described below, shortly after his drug ledgers were introduced at HERNÁNDEZ's trial. Hernández's Weapons Possession and Acts of Violence HERNÁNDEZ used firearms throughout his drug trafficking. HERNÁNDEZ's personal weapons included a modified AR-15, an Uzi inscribed with the name of Juan Orlando Hernández, "Presidente de la República," and an M60 belt-fed machinegun. HERNÁNDEZ also sold machineguns and ammunition to drug traffickers. In 2010, Diaz Morales obtained between 4,000 and 6,000 rounds of assault rifle ammunition from a member of the Honduran National Police who told Diaz Morales he obtained the ammunition from HERNÁNDEZ. In 2012, HERNÁNDEZ supplied 40 M16s to another drug trafficker. HERNÁNDEZ also coordinated at least two drug-related murders. In 2011, HERNÁNDEZ and Ardon Soriano caused the murder of a rival drug trafficker named Franklin Arita in the Copán Department. HERNÁNDEZ directed Juan Carlos "Tigre" Bonilla Valladares, the regional Honduran National Police chief responsible for the Copán Department at the time, to arrange for Arita's murder, which was executed by assassins using two 40-millimeter grenade launchers, M16s, and Israeli-made Galil assault rifles. In 2013, HERNÁNDEZ worked with other drug traffickers, including Ardon Soriano, to murder a drug trafficker named Chino because HERNÁNDEZ was concerned that Chino might cooperate with law enforcement. Hernández's Obstruction and Other Efforts to Influence the Investigation HERNÁNDEZ made false statements to law enforcement and the Court during the course of this investigation and prosecution, and he obstructed justice. HERNÁNDEZ (i) traveled to the United States in 2016 and made false statements to law enforcement about his drug trafficking activities; (ii) made false statements about his assets during a January 2019 bail hearing; (iii) caused sensitive witness information to be disclosed in Honduras in violation of a protective order in October 2019; and (iv) made false statements about his assets during an application for appointed counsel in February 2020. Eight days after the jury found HERNÁNDEZ guilty, on October 26, 2019, López Sanabria - the drug trafficker from whom were seized the ledgers bearing HERNÁNDEZ's name and Juan Orlando Hernández's initials - was murdered at a maximum security prison in Honduras. López Sanabria's attorneys confirmed to the media that: one of HERNÁNDEZ's family members and an investigator hired by HERNÁNDEZ's family had made unauthorized visits to López Sanabria prior to HERNÁNDEZ's trial; López Sanabria had rejected their efforts to obtain information about whether he was cooperating with the DEA; and López Sanabria had planned to cooperate with the DEA against Juan Orlando Hernández and HERNÁNDEZ. Leaked surveillance video of the murder shows López Sanabria talking to the warden of the facility, Pedro Ildefonso Armas, while a masked man walks past and unlocks a nearby door. Several individuals who are believed to be prisoners then storm through the door and shoot and stab López Sanabria to death. On December 9, 2019, a group of unknown assailants murdered Jose Luis Pinto, a lawyer who represented López Sanabria. Three days later, on December 12, 2019, a group of unknown gunmen on motorcycles murdered Ildefenso Armas, the warden of the facility in which López Sanabria was murdered, in Tegucigalpa. Hernández's Co-Conspirators On August 8, 2019, Fernandez Rosa was sentenced in this District to life in prison for, among other things, his participation in HERNÁNDEZ's cocaine importation conspiracy and for committing 18 murders. Several of HERNÁNDEZ's other co-conspirators, including, among others, Hernández Pineda, Calix Hernández, Bonilla Valladares, Arnaldo Urbina Soto, Carlos Fernando Urbina Soto, and Miguel Angel Urbina Soto, are also charged in this District with firearms and drug trafficking offenses based on, among other things, their participation in HERNÁNDEZ's cocaine importation conspiracy. On February 12, 2020, Hernández Pineda surrendered in this District and he is awaiting trial. On March 22, 2021, HERNÁNDEZ's co defendant and co-conspirator Geovanny Fuentes Ramirez was convicted at trial in this District of drug trafficking and weapons offenses. Fuentes Ramirez's sentencing is scheduled for June 22, 2021. * * * In addition to the prison term, HERNÁNDEZ, 42, was sentenced to five years of supervised release. Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding efforts of the DEA's Special Operations Division Bilateral Investigations Unit, OCDETF New York Strike Force, and Tegucigalpa Country Office, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs. This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/ This case is being handled by the Office's Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda L. Houle, Matthew Laroche, and Jason A. Richman are in charge of the prosecution. [Source: DOJ, U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York, 30Mar21]v) Brother of Honduran president sentenced to life in drug case. The brother of Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday after he was convicted at a trial that a prosecutor said exposed him as a central figure in one of the world's largest and most violent drug conspiracies. Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernández, a former Honduran congressman, was sentenced in Manhattan federal court by U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel, who also ordered him to forfeit $138 million. Hernández was convicted in October 2019 of charges that carried a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years in prison. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Laroche characterized the crimes as "state-sponsored drug trafficking." He called Hernandez the "central figure in one of the largest and most violent cocaine conspiracies in the world" and said that Hernández for 15 years fueled a flood of cocaine shipments into the United States by paying millions of dollars to top Honduran officials like his brother. Laroche said Hernandez's actions had turned Honduras into one of the most dangerous places in the world. Hernandez, he added, turned to drug dealing even though he grew up well off. He said Hernandez "can't point to poverty, lack of opportunities or a need to support his family." "He did it because he was greedy," the prosecutor said, adding that Hernandez has shown no remorse. Hernández's lawyer, Peter Brill, had argued for leniency and mercy for his client, saying the U.S. should focus anti-drug trafficking efforts on the "voracious appetite" of its citizens for drugs. Brill said Hernandez "feels that the witnesses who testified against him were not only self motivated but were motivated against him ... to make up as much as they could to ruin his life and the life of his family and have succeeded in doing so." In court papers, prosecutors had argued for a life sentence, citing Tony Hernández's criminal history and saying he had transported at least 185,000 kilograms of cocaine, "a staggering amount of poison that he helped import into the United States." They say he also sold weapons to drug traffickers, some of which came from Honduras' military, and controlled drug laboratories in Colombia and Honduras. "Between 2004 and 2019, the defendant secured and distributed millions of dollars in drug-derived bribes to Juan Orlando Hernández, former Honduran President Porfirio Lobo Sosa and other politicians associated with Honduras's National Party," prosecutors wrote. His brother served as the leader of Honduras' congress before assuming the presidency in January 2014. They allege that among those bribes was $1 million from notorious Mexican capo Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán to Juan Orlando Hernández. President Hernández has repeatedly denied any ties to drug traffickers, as has Lobo, whose son is currently serving a 24-year drug trafficking sentence in the U.S. In an audio recording sent to his staff, which The Associated Press obtained, the president said his brother's conviction "is hard for the family, hard for me personally." "I find it outrageous, I find it unbelievable that false testimony by confessed killers could have been heard and given weight in this way," the president continued, citing Honduras' progress in reducing violence as evidence of his stance against organized crime. In court on Tuesday, Tony Hernández looked pale and downcast. When the defendant was given a chance to speak, he complained about his lawyers, saying he hardly saw them and they barely responded to his emails. "I feel I have been lied to," he said through a translator. As Hernandez was led from the courtroom, a spectator yelled out: "Criminal! Just like your brother!" Outside the courthouse, about 80 people with signs critical of the president of Honduras loudly protested. [Source: By Larry Neumeister and Claudia Torrens , The Public Radio, New York, 31Mar21]vi) Honduran president's brother sentenced to life in US prison over drug case. Weapons sold, drugs trafficked, and officials bribed, Honduran President gets tangled in brother's network of crimes. Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernandez, brother of Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernandez, arrives for a press conference Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernandez, brother of the Honduran president, was sentenced to life in prison in the United States on Wednesday. He was convicted on drug charges and related weapons charges in October 2019. The high-profile case has also brought a spotlight on his brother, Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez. Hernandez, 42, a former Honduran congressman, was sentenced in Manhattan federal court where assistant US Attorney General Matthew Laroche characterized the crimes as "state-sponsored drug trafficking." Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez has come under scrutiny for allegations of being linked to his brother's trafficking ring What happened in the case? Prosecutors made the argument that Hernandez deserved a life behind bars citing his criminal history and the "staggering amount of poison that he helped import into the United States." He was accused of trafficking around 185,000 kilograms (204 tons) of cocaine in the US over 12 years. Prosecutors said Hernandez sold weapons to drug traffickers, some of which came from the Honduran military, and that he controlled drug laboratories in Colombia and Honduras. Hernandez turned to drug dealing even though he grew up well off, Laroche to the court, adding he "can't point to poverty, lack of opportunities or a need to support his family." Anti-narcotics officer stands infront of a burn pit which is incinerating cociane. In this 2016 picture, anti-narcotics and military police officers incinerate more than 200 kilos of cocaine seized in southern Honduras near the border with Nicaragua His defense lawyer, Peter Brill, said that the US should focus anti-drug trafficking efforts on the "voracious appetite" for drugs. Brill had argued for leniency for his client, saying he felt "that witnesses who testified against him were not only self motivated but were motivated against him...to make up as much as they could to ruin his life and the life of his family." US District Judge Kevin Castel agreed with the prosecutors. "Based upon Tony Hernandez' free choice to engage in a life of drug trafficking for 12 years, a sentence of life imprisonment is richly deserved," said Castel, who also ordered a $135.5 million (€115 million) in forfeiture. How did the Honduran president react? Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez has taken a tough stance on drugs and portrays himself as an ally to the US in immigration and anti-narcotics operations. His stance is in stark contrast to statements made by prosecutors who wrote that the president received "drug-derived" bribes from his brother. In a voice note released by Honduras's presidency, President Juan Orlando Hernandez said he found it "incredible that false testimonies of confessed murderers" were taken seriously. "What happened today is something hard for the family, hard personally," Hernandez said. "I do not wish it on anyone." About 80 people protested against the Honduran president outside the US courthouse where his brother was being sentenced. [Source: DW, Berlin, 31Mar21]Otras páginas: Seguimiento amenazas para la paz: |
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