Well-heeled: Chiluba's shoe fetish

Fresh from his court victory, Zambia's former President may now choose to reclaim some of the remarkable store of possessions that has been gathering dust in the offices of the anti-corruption task force during the five-year legal battle.

The contents of a collection of metal trunks bear witness to Frederick Chiluba's incredible sartorial extravagance: small mountains of silk dressing gowns and pyjamas, monogrammed dress shirts and tailored suits, many from the same Geneva store, whose owner Antonia Basile remembers payment sometimes arriving in suitcases stuffed with cash.

Pride of place must go to the more than 100 pairs of custom-made, size 6 shoes, each with heels stacked 5cm high to disguise Chiluba's 1.5m frame. Many of the pairs have been embossed in brass with his initials.

- INDEPENDENT