Trump plans to pardon ex-Honduran President Hernandez

US President Donald Trump on Friday expressed his intention to pardon ex-Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, who was convicted of drug trafficking in 2024 and sentenced to 45 years in prison.

Why is Trump pardoning Hernandez? 

The president explained his decision on social media by posting that "according to many people that I greatly respect," Hernandez was "treated very harshly and unfairly." 

Trump's announcement to pardon Hernandez came days before the country's presidential election and has strong implications for the country's politics, as the US president also threatened to cut US support if his preferred candidate loses.

In his social media post, Trump supported Nasry Asfura, the candidate of Hernandez's right-wing party, in Honduras' presidential election on Sunday.

Trump had also thrown his weight behind Asfura earlier, but his latest comments went a step further, suggesting that Honduras' future aid depends on Asfura's victory.

"If he doesn't win, 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," Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

Asfura has denied any links to Hernandez but celebrated Trump's re-upped endorsement.

What was Hernandez convicted of?

Hernandez led Honduras from 2014 to 2022. In March last year, Hernandez was accused by US prosecutors of involvement in the import of some 400 tons of cocaine into the United States.

He was extradited to the US just weeks after leaving office, when the current Honduran president, leftist Xiomara Castro, took office.

Hernandez has been appealing his conviction and serving time at the US Penitentiary, Hazelton, in West Virginia.

Trump's pardon of convicted drug trafficker Hernandez comes as the Trump administration strikes alleged narcotrafficking boats in the Caribbean near Venezuela. Democrats and legal experts have called the strikes illegal.

Edited by: Wesley Dockery