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Honduras Court Postpones Hearing for Ex-President Hernández
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Crime & Justice

Honduras Court Postpones Hearing for Ex-President Hernández

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Official statement In the courts
  • A Honduran court has postponed the initial hearing against former President Juan Orlando Hernández until August 24.
  • The postponement was requested by the prosecution to analyze evidence presented by the defense in the case involving alleged fraud and money laundering.
  • Hernández, who returned to Honduras in June after extradition and conviction for drug trafficking in the U.S., faces charges related to the alleged diversion of $10.8 million between 2010 and 2013.

A Honduran court has delayed the continuation of the initial hearing against former President Juan Orlando Hernández until August 24. The prosecution requested the postponement to thoroughly examine evidence submitted by Hernández's defense team in the ongoing case concerning alleged fraud and money laundering within Honduras.

The defense team has offered a total of 36 pieces of evidence, 34 of these are documentary, one witness and one expert report which is a technical consultant

— Carlos SilvaCarlos Silva, spokesperson for the Supreme Court of Justice, detailed the evidence presented by the defense.

This latest delay comes after the hearing, initially resumed on August 18, was suspended on August 12 at the defense's request for more time to review the prosecution's evidence. Hernández, who served as president from 2014 to 2022, returned to Honduras on June 26 after being extradited to the U.S. in 2022. He was convicted of drug trafficking in June 2024 and subsequently pardoned by then-President Donald Trump in December 2025, allowing him to face charges in his home country under the "Pandora II" case.

The "Pandora II" case, initiated in 2023, investigates the alleged misappropriation of approximately $10.8 million between 2010 and 2013. During this period, Hernández presided over the Honduran Congress, and the funds are suspected to have financed his 2013 presidential campaign. The defense has presented 36 pieces of evidence, including 34 documents, one witness, and a technical consultant, seeking to dismiss the charges.

absolute nullity

— DefenseThe defense team argued for the 'absolute nullity' of the investigations against Hernández.

Furthermore, the defense has argued for the "absolute nullity" of the investigations, claiming they were conducted "behind the ex-president's back" and that the criminal action was filed while he was not in the country. Hernández is currently facing these proceedings while out on bail, with restrictions prohibiting him from leaving Honduras. These measures were imposed on August 3 by the Organized Crime Court, which also ruled that the case should proceed through ordinary justice channels rather than the Supreme Court of Justice, as initially proposed.

I trust that I will obtain 'justice' and a 'definitive release order' in the process I am facing in my country, after ensuring that, according to the review of the fiscal evidence carried out by my defense, 'there is no fraud' nor 'money laundering offense'

— Juan Orlando HernándezThe former president expressed his confidence in obtaining justice and a definitive acquittal.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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