FBI briefed embassy on supposed mass shooting threats: Honduran police

Honduran Police said Tuesday that the US Embassy in Honduras was briefed by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on the supposed mass shooting threats.

Juan Manuel Aguilar Godoy, the head of Honduras' National Police, said the US Embassy issued a security alert based on information shared by the FBI.

According to the intelligence supplied by the US Federal Agency, three different landmarks were targeted: the Elliot Dover Christian School in Tegucigalpa, the Centro Civico in Tegucigalpa, and an unnamed mall in Tegucigalpa.

"The FBI was the one who obtained the information, and according to international regulations, they are obligated to notify their citizens. They are a source from the US government, and we give it the corresponding treatment," said Godoy.

According to him, such security alerts are received by Honduran authorities on a daily basis and are always granted the benefit of the doubt.

"Information is gathered, turned into intelligence, and the credibility of the source is verified to determine its accuracy. Taking the necessary measures, we deploy security," the police chief added.

However, Honduras' Foreign Minister Enrique Reina hinted through his social media that the supposed threats could have been politically motivated and geared towards causing fear amongst the Honduran people as the country is entering an election year climaxing in November.

"It is concerning the intention to create fear and anxiety among the Honduran people, especially in an election year, which coincides with the tactics used by criminal groups to carry out their criminal activities and media manipulations in collusion with political groups during the (2009) coup d'état and the narco-state," he said.

Honduras underwent a violent military coup in 2009 and the resulting regime change sank the country into a decade-long era of violence and corruption.

Just last year, Juan Orlando Hernandez, who served as president from 2014 to 2022, was sentenced to 45 years in prison in the US for drug trafficking, underscoring the deep ties of the ruling political force at the time with organized crime resulting from the coup.

While vowing that the administration of President Xiomara Castro will investigate the mass shooting threats, the Honduran foreign minister is actively warning that political forces are attempting to replicate the same fear tactics that preceded the 2009 coup.