Organized Crime

Prosecutors have formally charged a man accused of orchestrating four murders, including the killing of a son of former president Porfirio Lobo Sosa.

A judge scheduled June 9 for the ruling in the initial hearing against three former San Pedro Sula municipal officials, including the mayor's son-in-law, accused of money laundering, bribery, and fraud in a scheme that prosecutors say caused losses exceeding 45.5 million lempiras.

Five National Police officers were killed in a violent ambush at a house in Corinto belonging to a leader of a criminal organization linked to the Jalisco Nueva Generación cartel; investigators say about 150 gang members participated in the attack.

A judge scheduled a June 9 preliminary-hearing ruling on whether to send three former San Pedro Sula municipal officials — including the son-in-law of Mayor Roberto 'El Pollo' Contreras — to trial on charges of money laundering, influence peddling, and fraud tied to road contracts worth over 45.5 million lempiras (about $1.8 million) that prosecutors say were never lawfully executed.

The National Defense and Security Council approved the permanent closure of Dipampco after an oversight commission found protocol violations, illegal raids, negligence, and possible cover-up in a mission where five officers died, and authorities plan to replace it with a new specialized criminal-investigation unit.

The Asfura government dissolved the Dipampco police anti-gang unit and created a new Anti-Extortion Division led by Commissioner Jorge Daniel Molina Gálvez, who faces two prior prosecutorial charges for illegal detention and abuse of authority, drawing concern from human-rights groups.

Honduran authorities sent an alleged weapons supplier and other members of the Cártel del Diablo gang to pretrial detention on Thursday.

Authorities are investigating whether the May 21 massacre of 20 people in Rigores, Trujillo, was retaliation for the February killing of Ruth Nohemy Monroy, 17, the wife of recently arrested gang leader Alexis Molina Mencía.

After disbanding the Dipampco following an internal probe linked to the deaths of five officers in Omoa, Security Minister Gerzón Velásquez announced a replacement División Antiextorsión y Asociaciones Terroristas that will handle organized-crime and extortion investigations nationwide.

Liberal Party congressman Salomón Nazar has introduced legislation to create a protected-identity program for judges and court staff handling organized crime, drug trafficking, and terrorism cases, with safeguards requiring court approval and preserving due-process rights.