Central America
Brother of former honduran president arrested in $1.7 million COMIXMUL corruption case
Officials from the Public Ministry (Prosecutor’s Office) of Honduras, in coordination with the Military Police of Public Order and other institutions, arrested at least nine people on Friday, including a brother of former President Juan Orlando Hernández, for alleged corruption.
According to a statement from the Prosecutor’s Office, seven raids were carried out in the departments of Francisco Morazán and Comayagua in central Honduras, targeting a network composed of executives, employees, and private law firms that allegedly misappropriated large sums of money from the Cooperativa Mixta de Mujeres Unidas Limitada (COMIXMUL) several years ago.
The Prosecutor’s Office added that sources had “presented a third line of investigation showing the misappropriation of cooperative funds through the signing of fake professional service contracts, supposedly on behalf of the cooperative, amounting to over 47 million lempiras ($1.7 million).”
The arrested include Amílcar Hernández, the brother of former President Hernández, along with eight others, out of 22 individuals implicated in the case, including executives of the cooperative. The former president is currently serving a 45-year prison sentence in the United States for drug trafficking.
According to the complaint, Amílcar Hernández, a lawyer, along with other legal professionals, provided professional services that resulted in fraudulent actions, in collusion with cooperative executives and employees.
The Prosecutor’s Office stated that it had identified a serious misappropriation of more than 37 million lempiras ($1.4 million) by private law firms, and that this irregular scheme has caused millions in losses for COMIXMUL since 2015.
Friday’s operation also included the seizure of three condominiums, two companies, and two vehicles, following charges for money laundering and aggravated continued embezzlement, among other offenses, against the twenty people linked to the case.
Previously, in March 2017, the Prosecutor’s Office arrested six former cooperative executives, who were later convicted of money laundering and financial crimes, and seized 51 properties, movable assets, and four companiesacross Tegucigalpa, Siguatepeque, Choluteca, and Valle.
Amílcar Hernández and the other detainees were presented before a judge in Tegucigalpa, with the hearing continuing on Saturday, according to a Prosecutor’s Office source.
Central America
Panama confirms drug contamination of El Salvador coffee shipment occurred on its territory
A container originating from El Salvador and carrying coffee for export was contaminated with more than 1,152 packages of drugs while in transit through Panama, according to official information confirmed by the Panamanian government this Tuesday.
The case, which had previously generated political controversy in April 2025 after opposition sectors attempted to link the Salvadoran government to drug trafficking, has now been clarified through renewed investigations.
Authorities confirmed that the container departed from the port of Acajutla after being properly inspected, with no illicit substances detected at the time of export.
According to statements previously provided by El Salvador’s Minister of Defense, René Merino Monroy, the shipment traveled first to the port of Balboa in Panama, where it remained stored for several days before being transferred to another vessel bound for Manzanillo in Colón.
It was at that terminal that Panamanian authorities discovered the drugs and identified tampering with the container seals, indicating that the illicit alteration occurred during its transit in Panama rather than in Salvadoran territory.
The findings align with earlier explanations provided by Salvadoran officials and confirm that the contamination of the cargo took place outside of El Salvador’s jurisdiction.
Central America
Uber Eats adds Puntarenas and Turrialba to growing Costa Rica network
Uber Eats announced that it is continuing to expand its presence in Costa Rica with the launch of operations in the cities of Puntarenas and Turrialba, further strengthening the company’s growth in the country.
With this expansion, the delivery platform is now available across all seven Costa Rican provinces and works with more than 6,000 partner businesses. Its offerings include prepared food, supermarkets, pharmacies, pet stores, and other specialty retailers.
As part of the announcement, Uber Eats also introduced Marco Nannipieri as its new Regional General Manager for the Andean Region, Central America, and the Caribbean.
Nannipieri will oversee the company’s operations in Costa Rica along with seven other countries in the region.
“Costa Rica is a key market for Uber Eats in the region, with growing adoption of technology among users and businesses. Over the past five years, more than 1,000 restaurants and merchants have joined the app, and today we are entering a new stage of expansion that will allow us to reach more cities outside the Greater Metropolitan Area, creating new opportunities for entrepreneurs across the country,” Nannipieri said.
Central America
Report questions direction of Nasry Asfura after 100 days in office
The Center for the Study of Democracy warned Tuesday that the government of Nasry Asfura, which marks its first 100 days in office on Wednesday, has failed to show a “significant change in direction” and continues to follow a model characterized by exclusion, inequality, and external dependence.
In its report titled “100 Days of the Nasry Asfura Government: Concerns and Demands,” Cespad stated that the administration has maintained an economic and political model that prioritizes debt payments, the promotion of extractive projects, and the strengthening of the security apparatus over social investment.
The organization argued that the current policies have not addressed structural problems affecting large sectors of the Honduran population and warned that inequality and economic dependence remain key challenges for the country.
Nasry Asfura won the general elections held on November 30, 2025, in a process marked by allegations of fraud and delays in the vote count that lasted nearly a month due to a series of technological failures.
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