- NEW: The trial gets under way in the eastern city of Hefei, officials say
- Gu Kailai and a family aide are accused of murdering a British businessman
- Gu's husband, Bo Xilai, is a former top official who has been stripped of his posts
Hefei, China (CNN) -- The murder trial of Gu Kailai, the wife of a recently deposed top official in the Chinese Communist Party, has begun in the eastern China city of Hefei, local officials said Thursday.
Gu and a family aide, Zhang Xiaojun, are accused of poisoning Neil Heywood, a British businessman who was found dead in the southwestern Chinese metropolis of Chongqing in November.
The trial is the latest phase in the fall from grace of the prominent family of Bo Xilai, Gu's husband, who until earlier this year had appeared destined to join the elite committee of leaders at the top of China's ruling party.
The saga has become the most sensational Chinese political scandal in recent years, creating an extraordinary set of challenges for the central government as it prepares for a once-in-a-decade leadership transition later this year.
CNN's Jaime A. Florcruz, Jethro Mullen, Jason Kessler and Matt Smith, and journalist Peter Shadbolt contributed to this report.
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