Juan Orlando Hernandez’s lawyer denies former president’s relationship with drug-trafficking brother

(CNN Spanish) — The lawyer of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez this Wednesday dismissed the former president’s relationship with his brother Tony, who has already been indicted on drug trafficking charges in the United States, during his opening statements in the trial in which Hernandez is facing harassment. Allegations of drugs and weapons use, while the prosecutor’s office maintained that the former leader worked “hand in hand” with drug traffickers.

This is the second hearing in the trial, which began this week with the selection of 12 members of the jury (seven women and five men) and six alternates, whose identities will remain secret and will be in charge of deciding Hernandez’s fate. .

According to Judge Kevin Castell, the process will take two to three weeks, although the jury may take as long as necessary to reach a verdict, unless they are deadlocked and a mistrial is declared.

Defense attorney Renato Stabile told jurors in Manhattan’s Southern District Court that the charges they will hear at trial are not enough evidence to determine Hernandez is guilty.

“You will not see or hear Hernandez talking to drug traffickers, there is no video, no bank records,” he stressed. However, he admitted that there were photos of the former president with the criminals, but clarified that they were taken at public events.

The lawyer separated the former president from his brother Tony Hernandez, who was sentenced to life in prison in 2022 by the same judge who presided over the trial, Kevin Castel. “You will hear a lot about Tony, but this trial is not about him. “Tony is the younger brother and he used his brother’s name to make false promises,” he said. Additionally, he expressed that there is a 10-year age difference between the two, they did not grow up together and “they couldn’t be more different.”

The defense began its presentation with a theatrical line from William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, in order to undermine the credibility of the witnesses the prosecution would present. “Hell is empty and all the demons are here. In this case you will see that yes, all the devils are here. What you will see are witnesses who have killed many, many people. (…) When you hear them, remember their crimes and sentences. “They are despicable psychopaths who do not deserve your trust.”

Also, he reviewed the biography of Hernández, whom he described as a family man, and highlighted the actions he promoted in his two terms (2014-2022) against drug trafficking and violence.

For his part, prosecutor David Robles said Hernandez “worked hand in hand with the most influential and violent traffickers in Honduras to ship ton after ton to the United States.”

“This is a case about power, about corruption, about large quantities of cocaine and about the man in the middle, the former president of Honduras, the man, Juan Orlando Hernandez,” the prosecutor said, pointing to the former president, who was present in the room.

Robles added that the former president bribed Honduran officials, including his own brother, and used drug money to ensure his election. “He allied himself with organizations such as the Sinaloa Cartel, which gave millions of dollars to his political campaign, and with violent members of Mara Salvatrucha, who carried out murders on behalf of Hernandez’s allies,” the prosecutor said.

Police escort former President Juan Orlando Hernandez as he arrives at the Palace of Justice to attend his first extradition hearing in Tegucigalpa on February 16, 2022. (AFP via Getty Images)

Regarding the evidence he will present, prosecutor Robles announced that the jury will be able to hear testimony from an accountant who witnessed the meeting between Hernandez and the drug traffickers. Robles told jurors he would hear the former president say: “We’re going to throw drugs in the gringo’s face.”

He also announced that he would present Honduran drug traffickers who would detail how they carried out their operations, and a former mayor who would testify about how they trafficked drugs with the support of Hernandez and his brother. Also, he said members of the Sinaloa cartel will explain how and why they gave millions of dollars to Hernandez.

The public prosecutor said that the witnesses, despite being guilty, are cooperating to get their sentences reduced. “At the end of the day, the question is not whether these criminals are likable, but whether they are credible,” he noted.

If convicted, Hernandez could face up to life in prison. Since his arrest and extradition in 2022, the former president has reiterated his innocence.

An accountant, the first witness

Although the prosecutor’s office announced that a woman would be the first witness to appear, this Wednesday Jose Sanchez, an accountant for a Honduran company involved in drug trafficking, became the first to take the stand.

Sanchez said the company he worked for was a front to launder drug trafficking money and that he was present at several meetings between his boss, alleged drug traffickers and Hernandez. Sanchez said he watched as the former Honduran president received sums of US$10,000 and US$15,000 and listened as they discussed seeking protection in exchange.

Sánchez served as an accountant for Giovanni Fuentes Ramírez, who was sentenced in New York in 2022 for cocaine trafficking. Fuentes Ramirez is also expected to testify in the former president’s case.

Hernandez, or JOH, as he is popularly known, maintained close cooperation with the United States on immigration issues and the fight against drug trafficking during his administration. But in parallel, US authorities were investigating him for allegedly using his position to support drug-trafficking organizations in Honduras, Mexico and other countries.

Prosecutors’ thesis indicates that Hernandez allegedly used money from drug trafficking to enrich himself and finance his political campaigns and “used his public office, law enforcement and military to support drug trafficking organizations.” They also accused him of possessing weapons and helping smuggle tons of cocaine into the United States.

The 55-year-old former president has accused prosecutors of relying on statements from individuals persecuted by his government, highlighting that laws against drug trafficking were approved during his administration, including facilitating his own extradition. Hernandez’s defense has not confirmed whether he will take the stand to testify at trial.

In early February, two co-defendants pleaded guilty by the US State Department: former police chief El Tigre Bonilla and former police officer Mauricio Hernández Pineda, a cousin of the former president. Both have sentencing hearings scheduled for June and May, respectively, and could testify at the trial against Hernandez.