Jakarta – The trials of an Indonesian official and a businessman charged with corruption linked to a land exchange scheme involving a son of former president Suharto opened Monday.

Two separate panels of judges at the South Jakarta district court began the trial of Beddu Amang, 62, former head of the National Logistic Agency (BULOG), and Ricardo Gelael, 39, president of PT Goro Batara Sakti. Both have been linked to the youngest son of former president Suharto, "Tommy" Hutomo Mandala Putra.

The two defendants were each accused of violating a 1971 corruption law by "trying to enrich themselve while directly or indirectly causing losses to the state finances or economy." State attorney officials said last month the charges against Amang, Gelael and Suharto's son carry a maximum jail sentence of 20 years.

In the main court, packed with more than 70 people, prosecutor Suharjono said that Amang, Gelael and Hutomo caused the state to lose 95.4 billion rupiah (627,906 dollars) in a land exchange deal between 1995 and 1998.

Prosecutor D. Munthe, in the smaller courtroom where Gelael was tried, accused the defendant of the same charge. Indonesian authorities have said Hutomo will be tried separately but have yet to set a date.

Gelael and Hutomo made a deal with Amang in which PT Goro in cooperation with Hotomo's PT Sekar Artha Sentosa, would take over 50 hectares of BULOG land in a prime commercial area in return for 125 hectares of land also in Jakarta.

The deal allowed Goro, 40 percent-owned by Hutomo and Ricardo Gelael, to build a retail centre on the BULOG land in an affluent residential area.

But Goro failed to keep its side of the bargain. Gelael and Tommy also failed to repay a 20 billion rupiah (2.3 million dollars) debt to Bank Bukopin, resulting in the bank cashing a 23 billion rupiah Bulog deposit used as a collateral. The trial resumes next week.