MANCHESTER City owner Thaksin Shinawatra has gone on trial in Thailand accused of corruption, knowing he faces 13 years in jail if he is found guilty.

Thaksin Shinawatra and his wife are accused of buying a plot of prime Bangkok real estate for a third of its true value.

And the former prime minister has been barred from channelling his frozen millions into the Manchester club before the end of the case - dealing a severe blow to City's transfer ambitions.

Mr Shinawatra, who did not attend court yesterday, has been told he cannot leave the country or access his £800m assets while the trial takes place.

The telecoms millionaire went into exile in Britain after being toppled in a bloodless military coup in 2006.

Generals accused him of rampant corruption, undermining democracy and insulting the revered king.

But Shinawatra, who remains a popular figure among the country's poor, returned home this year after his party secured a majority in new elections.

But, despite hopes that he would be able to access his cash and resume his political career, he and his family instead face a total of 24 court cases, which range from tax evasion to conspiracy in the sale of a family business.

His trial began as thousands of people took to the streets protesting that sanctions taken against Shinawatra were not severe enough and accusing prosecutors of delaying many of the cases against him.

Mr Thaksin and his wife, Pojaman, both deny conspiring to defraud the country's central bank by purchasing the land below its true value.

Because the case is being heard by Thailand's supreme court, they will not have the right to appeal if convicted.

Their lawyer, Anek Khamchum, said: "We are confident that our evidence will be enough to prove in the court that Thaksin and his wife are not guilty."

Three of Shinawatra's legal team were jailed last month after claims they had tried to bribe a judge by presenting him with a cakebox stuffed with cash.

And the former premier of his country faced a fresh blow yesterday, when one of his key political allies was found guilty of organising vote-rigging in the country's northern province.