[JURIST] A court in the Philippines acquitted Imelda Marcos and two co-defendants of 32 counts of illegal fund transfers Monday, ending a 17-year criminal trial in which prosecutors accused the widow of former President Ferdinand E. Marcos [official profile] of illegally transferring up to $863 million to Swiss bank accounts. Marcos, who is accused along with her husband of having looted the Filipino economy of up to $10 billion through embezzlement schemes, is also facing civil charges.

Last June, a Philippine court acquitted [JURIST report] Imelda Marcos of five tax evasion charges, finding that the prosecution failed to demonstrate criminal intent in Marcos' failure to pay income and estate taxes between 1985 and 1989. Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos fled the Philippines in 1986 following a popular coup supported by the military [BBC backgrounder]. Approximately $1.24 billion dollars have been recovered, with assets valued up to $4.4 billion in the Philippines and nearly $80 million abroad being pursued by up to 600 lawsuits. AP has more. CBC News has additional coverage.