Under house arrest and 24-hour surveillance, ousted Nissan chairman became an international fugitive when he reportedly hid inside a large musical instrument case Sunday, January 5, and smuggled himself out of Japan to flee criminal prosecution there.
Ghosn’s wife, Carole, whom he hasn’t seen since his arrest more than a year ago, orchestrated his dramatic escape, according to The Guardian. He was aided by a band of Gregorian musicians, who were hired to perform at a dinner party at his home in Tokyo, and a team of former special forces officers, the paper reported, citing Lebanese TV news channel MTV for some of the details.
After the performance, Ghosn tucked himself inside one of the cases, which was transported to a small local airport, where a private plane took him to Istanbul, Turkey, the British paper reported. The Guardian stated he appeared to have boarded a Bombardier Challenger private jet bound for Lebanon, where he arrived before dawn on Monday.
The Brazil-born auto titan was raised in Beirut and is a citizen of Brazil, France, and Lebanon. As a citizen, he’s protected from extradition from Lebanon. Local authorities said he legally entered the country and wouldn’t face any repercussions, according to local media reports.
Ghosn was a giant in the auto industry. A dynamic executive credited with turning around the Japanese manufacturer, Ghosn was arrested in November 2018 and charged with multiple financial misdeeds while running Nissan. He and his wife have maintained his innocence and fought for his release from the Japanese justice system over the past year.
“I have not fled justice — I have escaped injustice and political persecution. I can now finally communicate freely with the media, and look forward to starting next week,” Ghosn said in a statement confirming his arrival in Lebanon.
Full Content: The Guardian
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