Top Chinese politician faces corruption trial The man once tipped to be China's next leader is to go on trial for alleged corruption. Bo Xilai faces a criminal investigation over alleged abuses of power and accepting bribes. He has also been expelled from China's Communist Party. Commentators say Bo will be handed a long prison sentence term. "It's likely that corruption charges will be pressed against this former political party member and it's likely that he will get around 20 years in jail," said Willy Lam, Professor of China studies at Akita International University in Japan. The charges stem from a murder scandal that saw Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, jailed for the murder of British businessman, Neil Heywood. Chinese officials said Heywood died from cyandide poisioning. Gu stood trial for the murder on August 5th. A suspended death sentence was handed down two weeks later, but that was immediately commuted to life imprisonment. Before the scandal erupted, Bo had been expected to be crowned as the successor to President Hu Jintao at the Communist Party Congress on November 8. That role is now set to given to Vice President Xi Jinping. More about: China, Corruption, Crime, Political scandal