Authorities in the United States arrested the brother of Honduran President Juan Orlando hernández and accused him of drug trafficking.
Former Congressman Juan Antonio hernández Alvarado, aka “Tony Hernandez”, the brother of Juan Orlando hernández, President of Honduras, was arrested last week in Miami. He was accused in a Federal court in New York of organizing “armed security” to deliver cocaine and bribing Honduran law enforcement for his defense, the drug enforcement Administration (DEA) said. It is reported by OCCRP.
“Hernandez and his staff allegedly conspired with some of the world’s deadliest and most dangerous transnational criminal networks in Mexico and Colombia to flood American streets with deadly drugs,” said Raymond Donovan, a DEA agent involved in the case.
Prosecutors claim that between 2004 and 2016, several drug trafficking organizations in Honduras and other countries worked with the support of Honduran politicians and law enforcement officials.
Us law enforcement agencies have accused Hernandez of participating in drug trafficking since 2004. They claim that his involvement in the trade gave him access to cocaine laboratories in Honduras and Colombia.
Cocaine was allegedly delivered to Honduras by aircraft, fast boats and at least once by submarine, then the substance was allegedly smuggled into the United States.
Earlier, Juan Antonio hernández was suspected of having links with the criminal organization Cachiros, engaged in drug trafficking. Recall that in 2017, the head of the criminal organization Cachiros said in court that Hernandez took bribes for assistance in money laundering. The accused’s brother, who became President of Honduras in 2014, introduced a tough policy against drug cartels and street gangs, which is supported by the United States and criticized by human rights activists.
