HomeNewsBriefHonduras Anti-Graft Body Secures Historic Conviction of Former First Lady
BRIEF

Honduras Anti-Graft Body Secures Historic Conviction of Former First Lady

ELITES AND CRIME / 22 AUG 2019 BY PARKER ASMANN EN

After a high-profile investigation, anti-corruption prosecutors in Honduras have secured a conviction against a former first lady, marking the first such judgment for MACCIH, the country’s internationally-backed anti-graft body.

A Honduran court found former first lady Rosa Elena Bonilla de Lobo, the wife of disgraced former President Porfirio Lobo, guilty on charges of fraud and embezzlement and acquitted her on charges of money laundering and misappropriating public funds, authorities announced August 20.

Authorities arrested Lobo at her home in the capital Tegucigalpa at the end of February 2018 on a number of criminal charges.

SEE ALSO: Honduras News and Profiles

The arrest followed a months-long investigation first revealed by the National Anti-Corruption Council (Consejo Nacional Anticorrupción – CNA), which was then completed by prosecutors from the Support Mission Against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (Misión de Apoyo contra la Corrupción y la Impunidad en Honduras – MACCIH) and an anti-corruption unit of the Attorney General’s Office known as UFECIC (Unidad Fiscal Especial Contra la Impunidad de la Corruption – UFECIC).

Dubbed the “first lady’s petty cash” (Caja Chica de la Primera Dama) case, authorities accused Lobo, along with other public officials, of seizing some 16 million lempiras (around $650,000) and creating a money laundering network to conceal government funds meant for social projects, MACCIH spokeswoman Ana María Calderón said in 2018.

The former first lady will be sentenced on August 24. She faces a minimum sentence of 58 years in jail, but could be behind bars for up to 87 years, according to La Prensa.

InSight Crime Analysis

The conviction of the former first lady -- a member of one of Honduras' most elite political families -- is a historic moment for anti-corruption prosecutors and the country’s broader anti-graft drive.

From the moment it began operating in April of 2016 with the backing of the Organization of American States (OAS), the MACCIH was hamstrung in part by a government that was slow to find the commission an official home, difficulties in recruiting talent and outside meddling in staffing decisions, according to a June 2018 report on the judicial mission from American University’s Center for Latin American and Latino Studies (CLALS).

However, this didn’t stop the MACCIH from investigating high-level corruption. One of its most ambitious cases to date, the so-called “Pandora Case,” accused several government officials of diverting millions of dollars of public money for political purposes, including to fund President Juan Orlando Hernández’s 2013 campaign.

SEE ALSO: How Honduras’ MACCIH Loses, Even When It Wins

But government intervention and manipulation made it difficult for MACCIH to advance investigations and secure convictions, making the final ruling against former first lady Lobo all the more significant.

That said, the future of the MACCIH and Honduras’ wider anti-graft drive remains in limbo as officials debate whether or not to extend the mission’s mandate, which is set to expire at the end of 2019. President Hernández may have a vested interest in dissolving the MACCIH to avoid further investigations into his alleged criminal conduct and that of his closest allies.

"While it underscores the breadth of corruption, and the importance of continuing and strengthening the MACCIH, [former first lady Lobo’s] conviction is token and largely for show … to make it appear that corruption is being effectively addressed,” Dana Frank, a professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz, told InSight Crime.

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

COCAINE / 18 MAY 2022

The jungle region known as La Mosquitia in northeast Honduras has been an ideal corridor for international drug trafficking. However,…

ELITES AND CRIME / 5 AUG 2021

Before the firing of Juan Francisco Sandoval, Guatemala’s top anti-corruption prosecutor, Attorney General Consuelo Porras pressured him to curtail investigations…

EL SALVADOR / 3 OCT 2022

Extortion in the Northern Triangle is predominantly done from prisons, yet prison populations have been on the rise.

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

All Eyes on Ecuador

2 JUN 2023

Our coverage of organized crime in Ecuador continues to be a valuable resource for international and local news outlets. Internationally, Reuters cited our 2022 Homicide Round-Up,…

WORK WITH US

Open Position: Social Media and Engagement Strategist

27 MAY 2023

InSight Crime is looking for a Social Media and Engagement Strategist who will be focused on maintaining and improving InSight Crime’s reputation and interaction with its audiences through publishing activities…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Receives Great Reception

27 MAY 2023

Several of InSight Crime’s most recent articles about Venezuela have been well received by regional media. Our article on Venezuela’s colectivos expanding beyond their political role to control access to…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Chemical Precursor Report Continues

19 MAY 2023

For the second week in a row, our investigation into the flow of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs in Mexico has been cited by multiple regional media…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Chemical Precursor Report Widely Cited

THE ORGANIZATION / 12 MAY 2023

We are proud to see that our recently published investigation into the supply chain of chemical precursors feeding Mexico’s synthetic drug production has been warmly received.