Charges against Tommy Suharto

Premeditated murder Illegal possession of firearms Fleeing to avoid an 18 month conviction

He denies any involvement in the killing but, if convicted, faces the death sentence.

He told the packed Jakarta court he was being set up by police.

"Those things are not mine," he said, after the judges were shown four rifles, five handguns and dozens of rounds of ammunition allegedly found in an apartment complex he owned.

In a surprise move, the number of judges hearing the case has been raised from three to five - a move which officials say is necessary to ensure an objective verdict.

Drive-by shooting

A police officer on Wednesday testified that police had found the weapons during a nationwide manhunt for Tommy, who at the time was on the run from an 18-month prison sentence handed down by Judge Syafiuddin Kartasasmita.

Tommy is the youngest son of the former president

Police captain Eddi Purbo Susyanto told the court that he and other officers found the weapons in a luxury apartment owned by Tommy.

Susyanto said the apartment's manager told him: "Those weapons belonged to M. Tommy".

Susyanto and another police officer were cross examined by defence lawyers for several hours, mainly in connection with the legality of their search warrant.

At one point Tommy himself questioned the witness, telling the court the weapons did not belong to him and asking "Did you check for fingerprints?"

Mr Susyanto replied that he had not.

Tommy, 40, is alleged to have hired two hitmen to kill the judge in a drive-by shooting last July.

The corruption conviction was controversially overturned in October, but when police finally captured him in November they had already named him as a murder suspect.

If you're nasty, I can be nastier

Attributed to Tommy Suharto in court

Correspondents say the case is being viewed as a significant test of Indonesia's legal and judicial systems, which are still believed to be open to corruption.

Prosecutors say they plan to call witnesses who say they saw Tommy threaten the judge.

"If you're nice to me, I can be better to you. But if you're nasty, I can be nastier," Tommy told the judge, according to the official indictment read in court last week.

The court was packed with journalists and photographers as Tommy arrived mid-morning wearing a traditional batik shirt. He was seen laughing and joking with his lawyers.

The court is due to sit for just one day a week and the trial could take up to four months.

The trial of the two men accused of actually carrying out the killing has been underway for some weeks.

Tommy is the favourite son of former President Suharto, who stood down in 1998 amid mass riots. He was accused of corruptly amassing millions of dollars but has been judged too ill to stand trial.