Trump to Pardon Ex-President Convicted of Drug Trafficking

President Trump said Friday that he'll pardon former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, who was convicted of drug trafficking and weapons charges last year and sentenced to 45 years in prison. The president explained his decision in a social media post, saying that "according to many people that I greatly respect," Hernandez was "treated very harshly and unfairly," the AP reports. In March 2024, Hernandez was convicted in an American court of conspiring to import cocaine into the US.

Hernandez served two terms as president of the Central American nation of roughly 10 million people. In his post, Trump for the second time endorsed Tito Asfura for Honduras' presidency, saying the US would be supportive of the country if he wins, per the Washington Post. But if Asfura loses the election this Sunday, Trump posted that "the United States will not be throwing good money after bad, because a wrong Leader can only bring catastrophic results to a country, no matter which country it is."

American prosecutors said Hernandez used millions of dollars in bribes from traffickers in Honduras and Mexico to build his political career, per the Post. They accused him of helping to ship at least 400 tons of cocaine to the US and safeguarding traffickers from extradition and prosecution.