Former Honduras President Sentenced To 45 Years In Prison Freed After Trump's Silence

Former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hern Marijudez/PHOTO via Wikimedia Commons

JAKARTA - Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hern Marijudez, who was sentenced to 45 years in prison for drug trafficking operations to smuggle hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States, was released from prison after receiving pardons from President Donald Trump.

Hern Marijudez was released Monday from the US Penitentiarygueton in West Virginia, a Federal Prison Bureau spokesman told The Associated Press. The bureau's online convict's records also reflect his release.

The release of the former US ally whose sentence, according to prosecutors, revealed that the influence of the cartel in Honduras occurred just days after the country's presidential election.

Trump defended the decision over Air Force One on Sunday, saying Honduras residents believed Hern Marijudez had been "arrested," although prosecutors argued he was protecting drug dealers who smuggled hundreds of tons of cocaine across the country.

This pardon also comes amid Trump's aggressive anti-narcotics efforts that have sparked heated controversy across Latin America.

In recent months, US troops have repeatedly attacked ships they claim to be transporting drugs north, a series of deadly maritime attacks that the government says are legitimate acts of war against drug cartels.

This pardon also comes amid Trump's aggressive anti-narcotics efforts that have sparked controversy across Latin America.