Tommy Suharto murder trial opens

Tommy arrived in court handcuffed and amid tight security

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- The murder trial of Tommy Suharto, the youngest son of Indonesia's former President Suharto, has begun in Jakarta amid tight security.

Hutomo Mandala Putra, popularly known as Tommy, is accused of masterminding the murder last year of a Supreme Court judge who sentenced him to 18 months in jail for corruption.

If he is convicted of the charge he could, under Indonesian law, face the death penalty.

The trial -- expected to last several months -- is being seen as a big test for Indonesia's justice system with many Indonesians skeptical that someone from such a wealthy and privileged background will face the full force of the law.

CNN NewsPass VIDEO The defense asserts Tommy Suharto can't receive a fair trial in Indonesia; the prosecution thinks his connections may save him. CNN's Atika Shubert reports (March 20) Play video   PROFILE Tommy Suharto: The fallen playboy    MORE STORIES • Tommy Suharto arrest 'thnx 2 SMS msgs'     CNN.com Asia More news from our Asia edition

About 400 police, many of them armed with automatic weapons, were deployed around the court building as the trial got underway.

Opening proceedings Wednesday lasted less than three hours with the prosecution and defense both presented their opening statements before the case was adjourned for seven days.

Before a packed courtroom Prosecutor Andi Rachman Sabar read the indictment against Tommy outlining the four separate charges he faces:

Tommy went on the run in September 2000 shortly after he was sentenced, sparking a massive and often-farcical manhunt by Indonesian police that lasted more than a year.

In July 2001, during his time in hiding, two men on motorcycles gunned down Justice Syafiuddin Kartasasmita -- the presiding judge in Tommy's trial.

The gunmen later told police that Tommy had given them several thousand dollars and the weapons to do it.

They subsequently retracted that statement and their separate trial began several weeks ago.

Fast living playboy

Tommy Suharto (center left) was arrested last November after more than a year on the run

Tommy was eventually recaptured by police in November last year and has been held ever since at a central Jakarta jail.

He has repeatedly denied any involvement in the murder of Justice Syafiuddin.

Known for his playboy lifestyle, fast cars and glamorous companions, Tommy was the most flamboyant of former President Suharto's six children and is the only member of the family so far to be brought to trial to face corruption charges.

His actual conviction for graft was overturned whilst he was on the run.

Plans to bring the former leader himself to court collapsed in September 2000 after judges ruled that he was too ill to face trial.

Doctors said that the elder Suharto was not fit mentally and physically to stand trial and, they warned, doing so could endanger his life.

The former president ruled Indonesia with an iron first for more than three decades until massive street protests brought about by the collapse of the Indonesian economy forced him from power in 1998.

During his time in power he and his family were alleged to have amassed hundreds of millions of dollars in personal wealth creamed off from state assets and kickbacks given in return for lucrative business contracts.