Ex-Nissan boss Ghosn 'arrives in Beirut' on private jet after Japan arrest: reports

Lebanese media has reported that former auto tycoon Carlos Ghosn has arrived in Lebanon on private jet.

2 min read

30 December, 2019

Ghosn was arrested in Japan [Getty]

Former Lebanese-French auto titan Carlos Ghosn, who is supposed to be currently under house arrest in Tokyo, has returned to Lebanon, local Lebanese press has reported.

According to Lebanese newspaper al-Joumhoria quoting sources at Beirut international airport, Ghosn arrived in Beirut airport via Turkey on a private aircraft on Monday evening.

The newspaper said it is unknown if he left Japan with judicial permission. The New Arab cannot independently verify the report.

In November 2018, Ghosn was placed under arrest in Japan following claims of financial misconduct.

The Nissan chief was initially questioned on underreporting his income among other charges, with the carmaker now looking to fire the chairman.

He has since been slapped with other charges.

The Ghosn case represents a precipitous downfall for an executive who has gone from a life of luxury and private jets to a small cell.

Nissan says an internal investigation uncovered "substantial evidence of blatantly unethical conduct" by the former chairman who ran three huge car companies.

He has already been stripped of his position on the board at Nissan and resigned from the head of Renault as well as the three-way alliance the two companies share with Mitsubishi Motors.

Ghosn has been replaced by Renault chairman Jean-Dominique Senard.

His wife Carole has also been questioned by prosecutors in Tokyo.

She was allegedly president of a company registered in the British Virgin Islands which received some of the five million dollars moved from Nissan funds to go towards a luxury yacht.

Carole Ghosn has also denied any wrongdoing and been active in the media in recent days, writing an opinion piece in The Washington Post in which she called on US President Donald Trump to lean on Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe to allow her husband to obtain bail.

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