Carlos Ghosn, the 64-year old former Nissan and Renault CEO, has been indicted yet again by Nissan “on the basis of Ghosn’s misuse of a significant amount of the company’s funds.”
For those unfamiliar, Ghosn was initially arrested in Japan on November 19, 2018, for “reporting compensation amounts in the Tokyo Stock Exchange securities report that were less than the actual amount, in order to reduce the disclosed amount of Carlos Ghosn’s compensation,” alongside former Nissan associate Greg Kelly.
Yesterday, Ghosn was indicted for the third time by Nissan, resulting in yet another detention extension. In their most recent press release, Nissan explained:
“Today, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.’s former Representative Director and Chairman Carlos Ghosn was indicted for aggravated breach of trust under Japan’s Companies Act. Prior to the charge being laid, Nissan filed a criminal complaint based on the same violation against Ghosn with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office.
Nissan filed the criminal complaint on the basis of Ghosn’s misuse of a significant amount of the company’s funds. Nissan does not in any way tolerate such misconduct and calls for strict penalties. Nissan is continuing its own internal investigation into potential illegal expenditure of its funds.
Also today, Ghosn and former Representative Director Greg Kelly were indicted for violating the Japan Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, namely making false disclosures in annual securities reports. Nissan, as a legal entity, was also indicted for the same violation.”
Since his arrest, Ghosn has been indicted numerous times, resulting in his detention extending well into 2019. We have added a brief timeline below chronicling Ghosn’s growing list of allegations since his initial detention:
- November 19, 2018 – Carlos Ghosn and Greg Kelly arrested in Japan following accusations of financial misconduct.
- November 22, 2018 – Ghosn and Kelly unanimously discharged by the board of directors for Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
- November 26, 2018 – Ghosn discharged by Mitsubishi Motors as Chairman of the Board and Representative Director. Renault abstained from taking action against Ghosn during this time.
- December 10, 2018 – Ghosn and Kelly re-arrested following allegations of under-reporting their income for the subsequent three years.
- December 20, 2018 – Tokyo District Court rejected prosecutors’ request to extend Ghosn’s and Kelly’s detention, leading many to believe Ghosn would be released on December 21, 2018.
- December 21, 2018 – Japanese prosecutors announced new allegations against Ghosn, extending his detention an additional 10 days. Kelly was not included in this set of allegations.
- December 25, 2018 – Kelly finally released after being granted bail.
- December 31, 2018 – The Tokyo District Court extended Ghosn’s detention by another 10 days leading to rumors of an alleged coup by Nissan to begin circulating.
- January 11, 2019 – Ghosn indicted for a third time, extending his detention yet again.
Renault continues to abstain from taking action against Ghosn at this time. Despite their abstinence, however, the French Government, which owns 15% share of Renault, is reportedly preparing to announce a new CEO.
Renault commented on the report, stating in their most recent press release:
“The review process has examined the compensation of the current Groupe Renault executive committee members for the financial years 2017 and 2018 and has concluded that it is both in compliance with applicable laws and free from any fraud.”
At this time, Ghosn’s guilt has yet to be proven.
Source: Nissan