Pandora Ii

A Honduran court on September 1 dismissed charges against former president Juan Orlando Hernández in the Pandora II case, ruling prosecutors failed to prove he diverted $10.8 million to his 2013 campaign when he led Congress, and ordering his release.

The initial hearing in the Pandora II case against former president Juan Orlando Hernández resumes on Monday, Aug. 24, as his defense challenges prosecution evidence and seeks to overturn fraud charges on grounds that other co-defendants were dismissed.

A judge imposed supervision by his legal team, weekly reporting, a travel ban, and a sworn bond on former president Juan Orlando Hernández in his fraud and money-laundering trial, while his defense filed a new motion challenging the charges.

Former President Juan Orlando Hernández's legal team submitted 36 pieces of evidence—34 documents, one witness, and one expert analysis—during an initial hearing in the Pandora II fraud and money-laundering case, with the trial to resume August 24 to address prosecution objections.

The initial hearing in the Pandora II case against former President Juan Orlando Hernández, accused of fraud and money laundering tied to diverted public funds from 2010–2013, resumes on August 18 after prosecutors presented 49 pieces of evidence.

Constitutional Court Justice Sonia Dubón criticized what she called selective justice in the Supreme Court's handling of former President Juan Orlando Hernández's Pandora II case, following a judge's decision on August 3 to replace his pretrial detention with alternative measures.

Attorney General Dagoberto Aspra reported that Juan Orlando Hernández threatened a PGR prosecutor during an August 3 hearing in the Pandora II fraud and money-laundering case, prompting Aspra to assume direct representation at the next hearing scheduled for August 12.

The attorney general's office announced it will seek pretrial detention for former president Juan Orlando Hernández at an August 12 hearing, arguing he poses a risk to evidence and claiming L169 million ($6.8 million) in public funds were diverted to political campaigning.

Former president Juan Orlando Hernández is set to appear in court on August 3 facing fraud and money-laundering charges in the Pandora II case, in which prosecutors allege a network diverted over 288 million lempiras (about $11.5 million) in state funds between 2010 and 2013, with at least 62 million lempiras allegedly benefiting his presidential campaign.

Former president Juan Orlando Hernández's lawyers filed an appeal after a Supreme Court judge declined to hear the 'Pandora II' case alleging fraud and money laundering, arguing the court should retain jurisdiction over cases involving former high officials.

The assigned judge in Juan Orlando Hernández's case for fraud and money laundering declined to continue, saying the investigation no longer involves a sitting high official requiring the Supreme Court's jurisdiction, prompting Hernández's lawyers to appeal and the former president to claim political persecution.

Former president Juan Orlando Hernández landed at Palmerola International Airport on Sunday, July 26, after receiving a US presidential pardon following his narcotics conviction, and now faces a separate Honduran judicial process in the Pandora II corruption case.

President Nasry Asfura stated that the government will receive former president Juan Orlando Hernández upon his return on July 26 as it does any Honduran citizen, without addressing the legal proceedings Hernández faces in the Pandora II fraud and money-laundering case.

Honduras's Supreme Court assigned Walter Miranda Sabio as the judge to handle cases involving former officials and ex-presidents under investigation in the so-called Pandora II corruption probe, following standard procedures for cases involving people with special legal status.

Former President Juan Orlando Hernández, pardoned after a US conviction, will return to Honduras on July 31, but the Prosecutor's Office — which in 2022 cited alleged financial and corporate ties to drug traffickers when seizing his assets — never converted that allegation into criminal charges.

Former president Juan Orlando Hernández's lawyers filed a motion to nullify all proceedings in the Pandora II case — alleging he was abroad when charges were formally filed — and challenged 15 of 36 proposed evidence items, with the hearing adjourned to August 24 so prosecutors can review the objections.

Former President Juan Orlando Hernández's defense filed a motion to keep his case in the Supreme Court rather than transfer it to the specialized organized-crime court, with a scheduled appearance set for August 3 on fraud and money-laundering charges in the 'Pandora II' case.