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Nissan's Carlos Ghosn offers to wear electronic ankle tag if released

TOKYO — Ousted Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn has offered to wear an electronic ankle tag and hire guards to monitor him in an unusual bid to secure his release on bail after two months of harsh detention in Japan for alleged financial crimes. Ghosn is also willing to remain in Tokyo, where he has leased an apartment, and post stock he owns in Nissan as collateral, his spokeswoman said. A new bail hearing is set for Monday after an earlier request was denied due partly to concerns the French executive was a flight risk. His release would allow Ghosn to meet more frequently with his lawyers and defend himself before the board of Renault, where he remains chairman and CEO, amid calls for his removal and potential moves to restructure the Nissan tie-up. Ghosn denies any wrongdoing as he awaits trial on charges of financial misconduct. "I will attend my trial not only because I am legally obligated to do so, but because I am eager to finally have the opportunity to defend myself," Ghosn said in a statement on Sunday. "I am not guilty of the charges against me, and I look forward to defending my reputation in the courtroom." Meanwhile, Ghosn's wife, Carole Ghosn, has written to French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss her husband's situation, her public relations representative said. The representative, Devon Spurgeon, confirmed a report in French paper Journal du Dimanche that a letter had been sent to Macron this month, but declined to provide details. France wants a full merger As Ghosn's arrest on Nov. 19 continued to cloud the outlook for Nissan's three-way alliance with France's Renault and Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan said it was not the time to discuss revising the partners' capital ties. Ghosn, who spearheaded Nissan's turnaround two decades ago, had pushed for a deeper tie-up between Nissan and Renault, including possibly a full merger by 2020, despite strong reservations at the Japanese firm. "We are not at the stage for such discussions," Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa told reporters on Monday. Saikawa said he had not heard directly about a reported proposal by the French government to integrate the Japanese carmaker's management with Renault. The Nikkei newspaper reported on Sunday that a French government delegation had informed Tokyo that it would seek an integration of Renault and Nissan, most likely under the umbrella of a single holding company. "Since I have not heard this directly, I cannot comment," Saikawa told reporters.

Japan minister launches counterattack after Ghosn blasts justice system

TOKYO — Japan's justice minister launched a rare and forceful public takedown of auto executive-turned-fugitive Carlos Ghosn after he blasted the country's legal system as allowing him "zero chance" of a fair trial as he sought to justify his escape to Beirut. After his dramatic flight to Lebanon last month, Ghosn spoke in public for the first time on Wednesday, saying he had been treated "brutally" by Tokyo prosecutors. He said they questioned him for up to eight hours a day without a lawyer present and tried to extract a confession out of him. In an effort to undo Ghosn's attempt to sway public opinion in his favor, Justice Minister Masako Mori followed shortly with a statement, translated into English and French, and held a news conference after midnight and again around 9:30 a.m. on Thursday morning to defend Japan's justice system. "I decided to do this because defendant Ghosn was looking to justify his unlawful exit from Japan by propagating a false recognition of our justice system," she said at the second news conference. "I felt that we needed to respond immediately to broadcast a correct understanding to people around the world." Ghosn, the former chief of Nissan and Renault, fled Japan last month as he was awaiting trial on charges of under-reporting earnings, breach of trust, and misappropriation of company funds, all of which he denies. Mori said Ghosn's escape from his trial in itself "could constitute a crime" that would not be tolerated in any country. "My impression in listening to him was that there were few statements that were backed by any real evidence," she said. "If he wants to prove his innocence, he should face fair trial proceedings here," she added, stressing that the allegations against him concerned financial crimes in Japan. "That would be the mark of a first-class businessperson and good citizen." Mori blasted Ghosn for violating his bail by fleeing the country "without showing a passport and breaking international rules that everyone in the world follows." "It was a breach of faith that can't be explained to our children," she said. The spotlight on Japan's justice system comes as Mori is set to host in April the United Nations' Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, held once every five years.

Ex-Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn indicted, may remain in jail for months

TOKYO — Nissan's ex-chairman Carlos Ghosn was charged Friday with breach of trust, according to the Tokyo District Court, making the star executive's release unlikely for months. Ghosn, arrested Nov. 19, was earlier charged with falsifying financial reports in underreporting his income by about 5 billion yen ($44 million) over five years through 2015. Ghosn; Greg Kelly, another Nissan executive; and Nissan as a legal entity also were charged Friday with additional underreporting of income, from 2015 through mid-2018. Ghosn's lawyer Motonari Ohtsuru said he would request that Ghosn be granted release on bail. His detention period for the breach of trust allegations was due to expire Friday. Kelly and Nissan were not charged with breach of trust. Those allegations center on Ghosn's handling of investment losses and payments made to a Saudi businessman. Ghosn, 64, says he's innocent. Suspects in Japan are routinely held for months until trials start, and Tokyo prosecutors maintain that Ghosn, a Brazilian-born Frenchman of Lebanese ancestry, is a flight risk. Earlier this week Ghosn told a Tokyo court he was innocent, in his first public appearance since his arrest, and appealed for his detention to end. But the court rejected that request. "I have a genuine love and appreciation for Nissan," Ghosn told the court. "In all of my efforts on behalf of the company, I have acted honorably, legally and with the knowledge and approval of the appropriate executives inside the company." He said the compensation was never decided on, the investment deal never resulted in any losses to Nissan, and the payments to the Saudi businessman were for legitimate services related to dealers and investments in the Gulf. Ghosn, who appeared much thinner than before his arrest, came down with a fever the day after his court appearance, but has since recovered, Ohtsuru, the lawyer, said. His wife Carole Ghosn issued a statement overnight out of Paris, expressing concern over his sickness. "I am pleading with the Japanese authorities to provide us with any information at all about my husband's health. We are fearful and very worried his recovery will be complicated while he continues to endure such harsh conditions and unfair treatment," she said. Apart from prosecutors, only embassy officials and Ghosn's lawyers are allowed to visit him. Such visits were canceled Thursday but resumed Friday.