Former Nissan CEO, Carlos Ghosn is an international fugitive since his dramatic escape from Japan. Ghosn, who used box, train, and jet to devise escape, faces charges for financial misconduct and breach of trust. After escape, he came out and made a statement slashing the Japanese Judiciary, “I did not escape justice. I fled injustice and persecution.“.
Crux of the Matter
Who is Ghosn? Carlos Ghosn was born into a French family in Brazil. After spending his days of youth in Lebanon and of higher education in Paris, he joined Michelin, a tyre manufacturer. He worked with the company for nearly 3 decades. In 1996, he had joined Renault. He devised a plan for reviving the sinking Nissan company. He adopted innovative production procedures to cut costs. He came to be known as “Le Cost Killer“. He has helmed Nissan-Renault Alliance. Later when Mitsubishi was merged with the company, the new alliance under Ghosn’s leadership became the leader in global car sales. Why is He Fleeing? Allegedly, Carlos Ghosn’s intelligence seems to have been put to use notoriously as well. He is facing charges against under-reporting his income. He is accused of under-reporting $85 mn in at least 8 fiscal years. Authorities claim that he did so in order to defer his spiking compensation to be a part of his retirement benefit plan. He is also charged with ‘Breach of Trust‘. He is believed to have transferred personal foreign exchange trading losses of nearly 1.85 bn Yen to Nissan during the 2008 Financial Crisis. He is also accused of transferring his ‘CEO reserve funds‘ amounting to $14.7 mn to a Saudi-owned subsidiary as a part of the collateral for derivative losses. He is also indicted for siphoning off $5 mn from Nissan via a dealership in Oman, allegedly for his personal use. It is speculated that that money was used by an investment firm of his son and to buy a luxury yacht. Investigation into Ghosn’s notorious transactions reveals that Renault in France has also submitted documents that show Ghosn’s financial fraud. He is also alleged of using company’s money for buying and renovating expensive properties in Rio, Paris, Amsterdam, etc. Nissan has also alleged Ghosn for reimbursing his sister approximately $100,000 annually for a fictitious position of an adviser. Ghosn’s Defence Ghosn and his lawyers, in the court filings, have denied the claims. They said all the payments were board-approved. For the compensation issue, Ghosn has said that the payments were still in draft and that they were reviewed by independent and internal lawyers both. When raising the issue of Saudi associate, Ghosn’s statement said that his payment was for “legitimate business purposes“. In addition to that, Ghosn has said that his removal from the board is an orchestration to diminish the possibility of a merger between Nissan and Renault. Ghosn’s Escape Plan In a thriller movie-like escape, Ghosn managed to escape from his under-24×7-surveillance home in Japan. Ghosn, who holds passports of three nations – Brazil, France, and Lebanon – is speculated to have either forged passports or entered Lebanon on his French passport that was allowed by the court. Firstly, Ghosn visited a hotel near his home, from where he was seen to be accompanied by, allegedly, two American men. The three of them boarded a train to Osaka. Then, all of them reached a hotel near Kansai International Airport. As per NHK, a couple of hours later, the two men were seen going out with two large containers. Ghosn is expected to have left in one of the boxes, which apparently had holes for air circulation. He was then taken to the airport and from there he is supposed to have left for Istanbul in a Bombardier TC-TSR private jet. The boxes were not checked because, one, they were too big to be put in the X-Ray machine, and two, luggage check is not mandatory for private jets. From Istanbul, he boarded another private jet, Bombardier Challenger 300 TC-RZA, and left for Beirut, Lebanon. Turkish Private Jet firm MNG, whose jets were used, filed a complaint against pilots and other crew members, who are involved in the matter. Flight details were also falsified and a complaint has been filed against the associated people. Ghosn-ting Much? No Carlos Ghosn is not yet ghosting and he has made a statement from Lebanon, “There was no way I was going to be treated fairly…it’s not very difficult to come to the conclusion that you’re going to die in Japan, or you’re going to have to get out.” He pointed out that he could expose the orchestrators if he gets a chance to. He slashed out on the judicial system of Japan and said, “It is important for me to emphasize that I’m not above the law. And I welcome the opportunity for the truth to come out and to have my name vindicated and my reputation restored. I did not escape justice. I fled injustice and persecution.”. International Police or Interpol has announced a ‘red notice‘ to arrest Ghosn. However, the issues are that Ghosn entered Lebanon legally and that Japan and Lebanon do not have any extradition agreements.
Curiopedia
A fugitive from justice alternatively has been defined as a person formally charged with a crime or a convicted criminal whose punishment has not yet been determined or fully served who is currently beyond the custody or control of the national or sub-national government or international criminal tribunal with an interest in his or her arrest. This latter definition adopts the perspective of the pursuing government or tribunal, recognizing that the charged (versus escaped) individual does not necessarily realize that they are officially a wanted person and therefore may not be fleeing, hiding, or taking refuge to avoid arrest. The fugitive from justice is ‘international’ if wanted by law enforcement authorities across a national border. More Info
Curated Coverage
Reuters – Factbox: Financial wrongdoing allegations against Carlos Ghosn
Channel News Asia – Planes, trains and boxes: Carlos Ghosn’s audacious escape
Japan Times – Japan justice chief vows to pursue Ghosn and tighten checks to prevent a repeat
NPR – Ghosn Defends His Escape From Japan: ‘No Way I Was Going To Be Treated Fairly’
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