Prosecutors claim Moura ordered Stang killed in a dispute over a piece of land she wanted to preserve and Moura wanted cut down for development.

Moura contends police pinned the crime on him because the gunman and his accomplice ran to a house he owns after the shooting and because activists pressured prosecutors to blame someone in addition to the confessed gunman, Rayfran das Neves Sales.

Last week, Moura told The Associated Press that justice was finally done. He expects a hero's welcome from well-heeled ranchers, farmers and other friends when he returns to his hometown of Altamira this week.

"The calls I'm getting, all the time now, are people saying they want to receive me with open arms," Moura said.

But prosecutor Edson Souza, who said he would appeal Moura's acquittal, said the decision will have disastrous consequences for activists in the Amazon.

"People who work to raise the consciousness, organize and lead the people will be increasingly targeted by those interests that want to kill them," he said.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press.