Former Honduran president sentenced to 45 years in US prison for helping smuggle tons of cocaine

A former Honduran president was sentenced on Wednesday to 45 years in a New York prison, after he helped drug traffickers smuggle 400 tons of cocaine into the United States.

A New York jury convicted former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández of drug trafficking and weapons offenses in March, after he spent as many as two decades helping notorious drug traffickers bring the illegal substance into the U.S.

Hernandez, who was extradited to the U.S. in April of 2022, has maintained his innocence, citing his former reputation as an anti-drug trafficker. But Judge Kevin Castel said evidence showed that Hernandez used "considerable acting skills" to portray himself as a hero of the anti-drug trafficking movement, while doing the opposite, according to the Associated Press.

“I am innocent,” Hernández said in his sentencing. “I was wrongly and unjustly accused.”

The sentence was less than the life sentence plus 30 years that prosecutors sought. But Castel also ordered Hernandez to pay an $8 million fine, and said the sentence should serve as an example to other “well educated, well dressed” criminals that believe they are above the law.

During the trial, prosecutors claimed Hernandez accepted millions in bribes as he rose through the political ranks in Honduras. He previously served two terms as the country's president, and his wife Ana Garcia is planning to run for president next year.

Attorney General Merrick Garland praised U.S. law enforcement officers on Wednesday for their work on catching and prosecuting Hernandez.

“As President of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández abused his power to support one of the largest and most violent drug trafficking conspiracies in the world, and the people of Honduras and the United States bore the consequences,” Garland said in a statement. “Thanks to the diligent work of the Justice Department’s agents and prosecutors, Hernández will now spend more than four decades in prison.

"The Justice Department will hold accountable all those who engage in violent drug trafficking, regardless of how powerful they are or what position they hold.”

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.