A judge in Honduras granted the extradition of former President Juan Orlando Hernandez to the United States, where he is wanted for alleged drug trafficking, the Central American country’s Supreme Court of Justice said on Twitter.
The judge “decided to accept the request for extradition presented by the Court of the Southern District of New York against ex-President of the republic Juan Orlando Hernandez Alvarado,” the court said on Wednesday.
The decision can still be appealed within three days of its writing, judiciary spokesman Melvin Duarte said, in which case the Supreme Court’s panel of justices would weigh in.
The former President, who held office from 2014 to 2022, is accused of having facilitated the smuggling of some 500 tons of drugs — mainly from Colombia and Venezuela — to the United States via Honduras since 2004.
U.S. prosecutors have alleged Mr. Hernandez, 53, received millions of dollars from drug traffickers for protection — including from Mexican narco-kingpin Joaquin “Chapo” Guzman.
He faces three charges: conspiracy to import a controlled substance into the United States, using or carrying firearms including machine guns, and conspiracy to use or carry firearms.
