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“It wasn’t in my thoughts to kill my partner.“, he declared this Wednesday before the judge of U.S a Honduran drug trafficker explaining that he did not participate in a plan to assassinate the then president Juan Orlando Hernandezjudged by drug trafficking in New York.
Devis Leonel Riverafounder together with his brother Javier of the Honduran cartel The Cachirostraced links with the Honduran political class, including the former president, whom he helped with his financial contributions to rise to public office in exchange for protection for the cocaine trafficking in Colombia.
LOOK HERE: US evidence against Juan Orlando Hernández, the former president of Honduras prosecuted for drug trafficking
Confessed perpetrator of 78 murders, the drug dealer began to collaborate with the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in 2013, before turning himself in in January 2015 to the authorities of U.S.
Rivera recalled that the brothers Arnulfo It is Luis Valleof Valle-Valle Cartelthey wanted to kill Juan Orlando Hernandez it’s your brother Tony Hernandez because the authorities had “seized several properties”And stopped answering his phone calls.
The then deputy of the Cortés department, Reynaldo Ekonomospoke with Rivera, whom he had known since 2004, and he told him that although the Valle brothers had asked him to participate in the planned assassination at the beginning of his first term (2014-2018), he did not do so “I agree”.
“It was not in my thoughts to kill my partner, whom I had bribed (in exchange for protection) and, secondly, I was already working with the DEA“Rivera, who is serving a life sentence plus 30 years for importing more than 5 kg of drugs into the United States, told the Public Prosecutor’s Office for arms traffickingfor being the leader of a drug trafficking gang, 78 years ago murders It is money laundry.
In another telephone conversation with Treasurer in which the then president would supposedly be present, Rivera would have reassured Hernández by saying: “At no point did I want to hurt him”.
After that conversation, Ekónomo told him that “John Orlando” it was “satisfied with the explanation”.
In exchange for intermediation, Ekónomo would have asked the drug dealer to$60,000, a truck and a house in Tegucigalpa”and this one gave him between“40,000 and 60,000 and a white van”.
MORE INFORMATION: New York prosecutor: Hernández used the Honduran police, army and justice system to protect drug traffickers
“Sorry”
During his interrogation, which began on Tuesday afternoon, Rivera revealed the links between drug traffickers and Honduran politics.
During the interrogation of Hernández’s defense, the lawyer Raymond Colón He asked him if he regretted the murders he committed or asked to be carried out.
“Not in his time, but now I regret having killed, but I also regret having bribed the corrupt politicians in the government of my country, such as (also former president) Pepe (Porfirio) Lobo, Juan Orlando Hernández, the military ( . .. ), police officers who instead of accepting bribes should have arrested us,” drug traffickers, he said.
“They became drug dealers like us“, said the boss who intends to reduce the sentence with the collaboration of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
In his 13 years as a drug dealer, he said he has accumulated some “55 million dollars“despite having to pay”$250,000 to bribe” for JOH, the acronym by which the former president of Honduras is known, who would have given them to his sister Hilda Hernandez.
Another “50,000” for your brother Tony Hernandez“800,000 to Juan Orlando’s allies“,”around 600,000 Pepe Lobo”, among other politicians who protected him, he detailed.
Before the jury that will deliver its verdict, the defense intends to undermine the credibility of witnesses who seek benefits in exchange for their testimonies, especially by insisting on their criminal records, making them fall into contradictions, and the lack of evidence for payment. of bribes they allege.
“The only proof the traffickers had was the word“Rivera told the lawyer, not without sarcasm.
SEE TOO: 4 Keys to Ex-Honduran President’s Drug Trafficking Trial Starting in US (and Why It’s Extraordinary)
According to the DEA, between 90% and 95% of cocaine consumed in the United States comes from Colombia and since 2004 around 92% to 94% pass through Central America (Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras It is Guatemala) before crossing Mexico.
Saint Peter Sulathe economic capital of Honduras, is the main “axle”Or route operations center, he said Jennifer TaulDEA drug trafficking expert during the trial of the former president of Honduras.
Hernández faces charges of conspiracy to commit drug trafficking and trafficking and possession of weapons, which could lead to him spending the rest of his days in prison, like his brother Tony Hernández, another central figure in the multinational organized crime and Pharmaceutic Company.
Source: Elcomercio
I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.
