Honduras Seeks Arrest of Ex-President Freed After Trump Pardon

By Staff, Agencies

Honduran authorities have issued an arrest warrant for former President Juan Orlando Hernández, days after he was released from a US federal prison following a pardon granted by President Donald Trump.

Honduras’s Attorney General, Johel Antonio Zelaya Alvarez, announced in a post on X that he had instructed domestic security agencies and Interpol to enforce an international arrest warrant against Hernández.

He said the move reflects the country’s determination to confront entrenched corruption and criminal networks that have deeply damaged national life.

Zelaya attached a copy of the Supreme Court’s arrest order, dated November 28—the same day Trump publicly signaled his intention to pardon Hernández. The decision immediately sparked criticism across the political spectrum in both the US and Honduras.

Hernández’s wife, who maintains that her husband is innocent, said he would not return to Honduras in the near term due to security concerns. She stated that he is currently staying in a “safe place” inside the US.

The former leader, who governed Honduras from 2014 to 2022, was convicted last year in a US court on drug trafficking charges and sentenced to 45 years in prison, along with an $8 million fine.

His case has also been central to wide-ranging anti-corruption probes at home, including the Pandora II investigation, which has targeted current and former officials accused of siphoning public funds.

In 2023, Hernández and several others were charged with misappropriating more than $12 million in state resources to finance his political campaign.

US prosecutors previously that Hernández conspired with major drug cartels during his presidency, enabling the transit of more than 400 tons of cocaine through Honduras toward the United States. According to the prosecution, he received millions of dollars in bribes that supported his rise to power.

Hernández has consistently denied the allegations, arguing that his trial was politically motivated and based on testimony from criminals seeking revenge.

Trump’s decision to grant clemency drew sharp rebukes from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers, who questioned pardoning a convicted drug trafficker while the administration claims to be intensifying efforts against narcotics networks in Latin America through increased military operations and controversial interdictions in the Caribbean.