A Honduran court has dismissed the last two remaining charges against former president Manuel Zelaya, who was ousted in a coup two years ago.
An appeals court panel Monday annulled corruption charges against Mr. Zelaya, who lives in exile in the Dominican Republic. Two of three judges on the panel voted for dismissal of the charges. Federal prosecutors have 60 days to appeal.
Mr. Zelaya was forced out of office in a military-backed coup on June 28, 2009 and put on a plane to Costa Rica. Congressional leader Roberto Micheletti then took power on an interim basis. In November of that year, Porfirio Lobo was elected president and took office on January 27, 2010.
Two months before the election, Mr. Zelaya made a surprise return to Honduras, taking refuge in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa under threat of arrest.
Mr. Zelaya flew to exile in the Dominican Republic the day Mr. Lobo was inaugurated. Critics of Mr. Zelaya say the former president was ousted for trying to illegally change the constitution to extend his term in office.
Honduras was suspended from the Organization of American States following the coup.
Last month, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told President Lobo she supports Honduras’s efforts to regain admission to the OAS.
