Carlos Ghosn inappropriately received $9 million in compensation from a joint venture (JV) between Nissan Motor and Mitsubishi Motors, the Japanese automakers stated on Friday, raising the possibility of their ousted chairman facing a fresh charge of embezzlement.
In the recent twist to the saga of the once-feted official’s fall from grace, the automakers have discovered that Ghosn was paid by their Netherlands-based JV without the information of the unit’s two other directors – Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa and Mitsubishi CEO Osamu Masuko.
Ghosn, arrested and detained in Japan for about two months, has already been indicted on charges of under-reporting his earning for eight years at Nissan through March 2018, and temporarily moving personal investment losses to the automaker during the international financial crisis.
“That such misconduct also took place at our affiliate is beyond shocking … it’s sad,” Masuko informed reporters, pointing to the payments made to Ghosn from Nissan-Mitsubishi B.V., registered in the Netherlands in 2017.
Both Mitsubishi and Nissan stated they would consider ways to recover the amount from Ghosn, whereas Mitsubishi lawyer Kei Umebayashi stated a criminal charge was also possible.
“The most likely charge for this would be embezzlement,” he informed reporters at a briefing.
