EMBASSY CEREMONY IN HONOR OF MURDERED DRUG CZAR

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEGUCIGALPA 000004 SIPDIS STATE FOR INR/B, INL, WHA/CEN E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/06/2020 TAGS: PINR SNAR PGOV HO SUBJECT: EMBASSY CEREMONY IN HONOR OF MURDERED DRUG CZAR Classified By: Ambassador Hugo Llorens, reasons 1.4 (b & d) ¶1. (U) Leslie Portillo, the widow of assassinated drug czar General Julian Aristides Gonzalez, along with their daughter, came to the Embassy December 18 for a ceremony in honor of her husband. The Ambassador presented a plaque from the Embassy, along with letters of condolences form JTF/S and the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Officials from several Embassy offices attended, as did Honduran Attorney General Luis Alberto Rubi and several officials from his office. ¶2. (U) Gonzalez was shot to death in his car the morning of December 8 after dropping his daughter at school. The murder had all the markings of a hit by drug cartels. Gonzalez was a close ally of the US and an independent force in the Honduran government dedicated to the fight against narcotrafficking. ¶3. (C) FOR INR/B: In a private conversation before the ceremony, Portillo told the Ambassador, DCM and ORA officer that her husband had not trusted de facto regime leader Roberto Micheletti on narcotrafficking issues and that he had kept his distance from him. She said that her husband had believed that Micheletti was involved in some manner in the drug business, but gave no details. She expressed bitterness that no one from the Micheletti regime had called her to express condolences over her husband,s murder. (Note: The Honduran Attorney General position is independent of the government. End note.) Portillo expressed concern for her daughter,s and her safety, saying that her husband had discussed his work in detail with them, and that she believed this put them at risk. ¶4. (C) Comment: We have no collaboration of Portillo,s claim against Micheletti. We do believe that there is a security threat against Portillo and her daughter and are exploring options with DHS on bringing them to the US (Gonzalez had a pending immigrant visa petition). LLORENS