Rio Tinto’s (RIO.ASX, RIO.LSE) head iron salesman in China admitted to taking bribes as his trial began in Shanghai Monday, the Financial Times reported. Stern Hu, an Australian citizen, and three Chinese colleagues stand accused of taking bribes and stealing commercial secrets, charges that could result in jail terms of up to 20 years, according to one defense lawyer. Court proceedings were closed to the media but an Australian consular official and the defendants’ legal teams were in attendance. Tom Connor, Australian consul general in Shanghai, said that Hu had been accused of accepting two bribes, one for US$146,000 and one for US$790,000, and that Hu “did acknowledge the truth of some of those bribery amounts.” Connor refused to say whether Hu had entered an official guilty plea. The defendants are expected to argue that some of the amounts they received were commissions on iron ore sales and not bribes. After the bribery charges are heard, the court will move on to the commercial secrets charges.