In what could be compared to the service expected at a fast food chain, Honduras Supreme Court released from custody an accused Drug Kingpin from custody in less than 24 hours following his apprehension. The order came from the new Honduras Police Director, “Tigre” Bonilla, who has been fighting crime, politics, and interference at all levels to get the “job done”, with thus far, great results, if you were to ask anyone on the streets in Honduras.
Following up on various tips, as well as accusations from a Honduras journalist, who now fears for his life, Tiger Bonilla ordered his team to investigate the drug kingpin known as “Chepe” Luna.
The investigation led to the owner of a transportation company known as “Transportes Ulua” which operates up to 400 semi trucks circulating throughout Central America, including Panama. The company is based in Villa Adela, Comayaguela, where the accused, real name Jose Natividad Luna Pereira, is regularly entertaining Honduras National Police officers for lunch, dinner, and other activities.
The Honduras police arrested Luna on an outstanding warrant from August 4th, 1998, issued by the justices of the city of Choluteca. On March 4th, 2004, a red alert was issued for Chepe Luna by Interpol for illegal immigration movements, as well as distribution of narcotics and money laundering. On March 25th, 2004, the magistrate of the Court of the Southern District of New York, Kevin N. Fox, issued an order of arrest against Chepe Luna, under case #04CRIM288, subsequently forwarded to Interpol. The United States DEA considers him the “Chief” of drug trafficking in Central America.
The investigations by various law enforcement agencies throughout Central America, as well as the US DEA, and in particular, El Salvador, show that Chepe Luna operates a network of 18 wheelers that receive their cocaine cargos from high speed boats along various rendezvous points along the Pacific coast of Central America. In addition, he has been tied to money transfers from the USA to deceased persons, in order to receive funds via wire transfers.
The Salvadoran President, Mauricio Funes, informed the Honduran public that “Honduras had a drug dealer owner of a transportation company called Ulúa, who is called José Natividad Luna Pereira, and he is friends of the Choluteca police officers. They eat with him, talk with him”; as reported by Ariel D’Vicente, owner of Freedom TV channel 21 in Choluteca. Last week, Tiger Bonilla also recognized that there are police officers who openly associate with drug lords. To date, however, none of these policemen have been apprehended.
The Honduras Ministry of Security confirmed yesterday that the accused, José Natividad Pereira Luna, has an open red alert issued by Interpol, but that he was released from custody following “Express Checkout Service” by a Honduras Supreme Court Judge who ruled he was arrested based on a capture issued by a Honduras national court order that had expired, due to the 10 year statute of limitations.
Hector Ivan Mejia, spokesman for the Ministry of Security, confirmed that it “is in the system”, the Interpol red alert against the Honduran known as “Chepe Luna”. The International alert issued in 2004 was reactivated in 2010, based on a lawsuit filed in Washington against Chepe Luna by the Commission of Alleged Offences in New York. “Washington is asking that (Pereira Luna) and/or his attorney present themselves in New York to answer to the charges referring to the case,” stated Mejia.
The national police can not explain why the arrest warrant used to apprehend Pereira Luna was not upheld, considering all of the other charges, and the red alert issued by Interpol. He was plain and simple, “let go free” in less than 24 hours by order of the Honduras Supreme Court!
The President of El Salvador, Mauricio Funes, voiced his displeasure immediately, and said the decision of the Supreme Court of Justice in Honduras to release the drug kingpin Jose Natividad Pereira, foiled the possibility of justice being applied to a well known narcotics trafficker and money launderer who is allowed to roam freely within Honduras and spends his time entertaining police. (The El Salvador president has a 72 percent approval rating in his country according to a CID-Gallup survey.) After learning of the release of Chepe Luna because his defense lawyer filed a writ of habeas corpus to the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court, the Salvadoran President did not hesitate to hide his displeasure over the action, saying that to release him, and to just set him free, thwarted an extremely important capture made by the Honduran security forces, and is simply frustrating.
On the streets throughout Honduras, the public is in awe; not only that the Supreme Court let a person with an obvious Interpol Red Alert go free, but they ask themselves how is it even possible that this case, not only got to the Supreme Court so fast, but was ruled on in minutes following being presented to the court, “You would think our Honduras Justice system is like McDonalds” is the comment being tossed around the country by Catrachos.
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