Lusaka, 17 Aug-(ANA)-Former President Frederick Chiluba of Zambia has been cleared of corruption charges after a long-running trial.
He was accused of embezzling $500,000 during his 10-year presidency, but a judge ruled the funds could not be traced to government money.
The Lusaka court delivered its verdict following a six-year trial prolonged by the 63-year-old's health problems.
Mr Chiluba has famously extravagant tastes - spending millions on designer clothes from Europe.
He has a huge collection of shoes, all of which have two-inch high heels built-in to disguise his diminutive stature.
His many supporters crammed into the court whooped and clapped as the magistrate delivered six not guilty verdicts.
Reports say elation turned into chaos as the former president left for home where he gave an impromptu news conference. The devil had been defeated, he declared, and he criticised foreign countries for meddling in Zambian affairs.
Thanking God, his wife and well-wishers, he closed proceedings with a rousing hymn.
The culmination of that process was the verdict read out by Judge Jones Chinyama in a six-hour hearing.
"We are satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the prosecution failed to prove that the accused stole funds," he told the court.
His wife, Regina Chiluba, was jailed in March for receiving stolen funds while her husband was in office. She is appealing against the sentence.
Two businessmen, on trial with Mr Chiluba, were convicted of embezzlement. (ANA)
UK/Coffee