Court clears ex-president Arroyo of plunder

The Philippine Supreme Court has dismissed a plunder charge against former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, ordering her immediate release after nearly five years of detention in hospital.
Supreme Court spokesman Theodore Te said on Tuesday that 15 justices had voted 11-4 to grant Arroyo’s petition seeking the dismissal of her corruption case owing to a lack of evidence.
The case involved the alleged misuse of $7.8 million from the government’s charity office.