Honduras Ex-President Juan Orlando Hernandez Surrendered After U.S. Requests Extradition┃Why Was He Arrested?

Honduras' former President Juan Orlando Hernandez has turned himself in to authorities Tuesday following a U.S. extradition request.

In an audio message he posted on Twitter early Tuesday, Hernandez said it was not an easy moment, and he does not "wish it on anybody."

In a separate message on Facebook, the former president wrote that he was ready to present himself voluntarily and defend himself "in accordance with the law."

Honduras police officers surrounded Hernandez's home on Monday night, Axios reported. According to Al Jazeera, a judge ordered Hernandez's arrest amid an extradition request by the U.S. on accusations of drug trafficking.

On Tuesday afternoon, court spokesman Melvin Duarte told reporters that an arrest warrant for Hernandez was issued as hundreds of police continued to surround the former president's home in Tegucigalpa pending a decision on the U.S. bid. The spokesman added that Hernandez must appear before the judge within 24 hours.

Television footage showed the former president leaving his home in the Honduran capital and being escorted by armed police. The former president was given a bulletproof vest by police and was handcuffed as he went out of his residence.

Charges Against Honduras Ex-President Juan Orlando Hernandez

The former president of Honduras has become unpopular after leading the country for eight years and stepped down less than a month ago.

Juan Orlando Hernandez was accused of allowing organized crime and corruption to penetrate the highest positions of power, keeping Honduras be one of the poorest and most violent countries in Latin America.

The New York Times reported that Hernandez allegedly participated in a "violent drug-trafficking conspiracy" that since 2004 has transported 500 tons of cocaine from Venezuela and Colombia to the U.S. through Honduras.

The extradition request document claimed that he also received millions of dollars in bribes for allowing the shipments and protecting drug traffickers from being prosecuted.

Hernandez has been considered a U.S. ally. However, it turned into a different direction after U.S. prosecutors charged members of the Honduran political family with using state resources to traffic drugs to the U.S.

Hernandez's brother, Tony Hernandez, was convicted by a New York federal court of drug trafficking charges. Tony was sentenced last year to life imprisonment, The Washington Post reported.

Prosecutors in his brother's case also argued that Hernandez agreed to facilitate the use of Honduras armed forces personnel as security for drug traffickers.

Another court filing noted that the former president allegedly said, according to a witness, that he wanted to shove drugs "right up the noses of the gringos" by supplying and flooding the U.S. with cocaine.

Honduras Supreme Court Judge to Decide on Extradition Request

Honduras's Supreme Court will decide whether to grant the extradition request from the U.S. Juan Orlando Hernandez's defense team said the process could last between two and three months.

The Supreme Court judge who is set to hear Juan Orlando Hernandez's case is affiliated with the former president's party and has a record of absolving suspects in corruption cases, according to the head of the National Anti-Corruption Council, Gabriela Castellanos.

Hernandez's U.S. extradition will be seen as a huge win for President Joe Biden's administration when it comes to foreign policy.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier said that Hernandez was on a list last year of people accused of corruption or undermining democracy in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala.

Honduras' new president, Xiomara Castro, has said that Hernandez turned Honduras into a "narco-dictatorship."

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Honduras decidirá si extradita a Juan Orlando Hernández a EE. UU. - From DW Espanol