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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 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.