ABIDJAN, Ramadan 18, 1432, Aug 18, 2011, SPA -- Ivory Coast's former president Laurent Gbagbo and his wife Simone, under house arrest in different towns in the north since they were ousted from power in April, were charged for the first time this week with "economic crimes, armed robbery, looting and embezzlement", the public prosecutor said on Thursday, Reuters reported. Gbagbo had been charged on Thursday, public prosecutor Simplice Kouadio Koffi told a news conference, while Simone had been charged on Tuesday and "moved into preventative detention" in a jail, from the house under surveillance where she was previously held. -- SPA 21:55 LOCAL TIME 18:55 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/918854