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Trump pardon brings him back
Honduran ex-president Juan Orlando Hernandez returned to Honduras on Sunday after US President Donald Trump pardoned him while he was serving a 45-year prison sentence in the United States for drug trafficking.
“Based on facts observed and verified directly by our reporters or by informed sources”
France 24 said Hernandez was serving the sentence until Trump pardoned him last year, and that he returned to his home country on Sunday.
The BBC reported that Hernandez arrived in Honduras on Sunday after five years outside the country, after being released last December following a pardon from Trump.
The BBC also said Hernandez was greeted by family members and hundreds of supporters who cheered him as he arrived on a private flight at Palmerola airport on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa.
In Tegucigalpa, Reuters reported that Hernandez landed at Palmerola International Airport, about 60 kilometres north-west of the capital, Tegucigalpa, on a private flight.
Court date and competing narratives
Hernandez is expected to appear before a court on August 3 to face charges of fraud and money laundering, according to Reuters and the BBC.
Reuters reported that an arrest warrant issued against him was suspended in June, meaning he will not be detained upon arrival, and that Hernandez said he would request the charges be dismissed.
The BBC quoted Hernandez’s improvised speech, including Trump’s words: "The most well-informed president in the world reviewed my case in detail and acknowledged that an injustice was done. It’s a witch hunt, the use of the justice system as a political weapon."
The BBC said prosecutors in New York proved Hernandez facilitated the passage of hundreds of tons of Colombian cocaine toward the United States, and it said he was accused of doing so in alliance with drug lords including Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.
In Tegucigalpa, Reuters also reported that Hernandez told Reuters on Wednesday, "I cannot deny the profound emotion and joy I feel in my heart to be returning home," as he described the process as extremely difficult.
Pandora II and what’s at stake
Hernandez’s return keeps focus on corruption allegations tied to a case known as “Pandora II,” which Reuters said accused Hernandez and other high-profile officials of diverting nearly $US11 million in state funds to political campaigns between 2010 and 2013.
“TEGUCIGALPA - Honduran ex-president Juan Orlando Hernandez returned to his country on Sunday, almost eight months after US President Donald Trump controversially pardoned his 45-year prison sentence for drug trafficking”
Reuters reported that the pardon did not impact the charges in Honduras, and it said Hernandez told Reuters he did not rule out standing for office again, though he said it was not in his immediate plans.
The BBC said the Honduran authorities accuse Hernandez of diverting US$2 million in public funds for his first presidential campaign, and it said he must appear before a court on August 3 to face charges of fraud and money laundering.
The BBC also said the return drew rejection from human rights organizations, quoting Joaquín Mejía as saying, "It is a message that in Honduras there is no accountability."
In addition, Reuters reported that a corruption investigation known as “Pandora II” accused Hernandez of diverting nearly $US11 million in state funds, while it also noted that charges against former President Porfirio Lobo and ex-finance minister Wilfredo Cerrato were dismissed.
