Prosecutors indict Nissan’s ex-chairman
Ghosn alleged to under-report pay by US$44M
TOKYO • Prosecutors have charged Nissan Motor
Co.’s former chairman Carlos Ghosn, another executive and the automaker itself for allegedly violating financial laws by under-reporting income.
The charges imposed Monday involve allegations Ghosn’s pay was underreported by about 5 billion yen (US$44 million) in 20112015. The prosecutors said earlier that the allegations were the reason for Ghosn’s arrest on Nov. 19.
The arrest has stunned many and raised concerns over the Japanese automaker and the future of its alliance with Renault SA of France.
The prosecutors issued statements Monday outlining new allegations against Ghosn and Greg Kelly, the other executive. Those are of under-reporting another four billion yen (US$36 million) in 20162018. Nissan as a company was not mentioned in the latest allegations, which did not give details about the income thought to have been under-reported.
In Japan, a company can be charged with wrongdoing. A court date is still undecided as the prosecutors continue to question Ghosn and Kelly.
The maximum penalty for violating Japan’s financial laws, as the prosecutors allege, is 10 years in prison, a 10 million yen (US$89,000) fine, or both.
Some kind of action by the prosecutors had been expected because the detention period allowed for the allegations disclosed earlier was to end on Monday.
Nissan Motor Co. confirmed the charges against it in a statement and vowed to strengthen its governance and compliance.
“Nissan takes this situation extremely seriously,” it said. “Making false disclosures in annual securities reports greatly harms the integrity of Nissan’s public disclosures in the securities markets, and the company expresses its deepest regret.”
Kelly, 62, an American, is suspected of having collaborated with Ghosn.
Kelly’s attorney in the U.S., Aubrey Harwell, told The Associated Press earlier this month that his client is asserting his innocence. He said insiders at Nissan and outside experts had said the handling of the income reporting was legal. Ghosn has not commented.
Ghosn was ousted as Nissan chairman and Kelly lost his representative director title following their arrests. They both remain on Nissan’s board pending a shareholder’s meeting.
Ghosn, 64, was sent to Nissan by its partner Renault SA of France in 1999. He led a dramatic turnaround of the near-bankrupt Japanese automaker. But his star-level compensation drew attention since executives in Japan tend to be paid far less than their international counterparts.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a news conference Monday that relations between Japan and France are unshakable despite concerns over the future of Nissan’s alliance with Renault.
“It is important to maintain stability in the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi alliance, which is a symbol of industrial co-operation between Japan and France,” he told a televised news conference Monday, adding that Japan will promote improved corporate governance in line with global standards.
Shin Kukimoto, deputy chief prosecutor at the Tokyo District Prosecutor’s Office, declined Monday to say if the suspects were rejecting the allegations. He said Ghosn and Kelly were being detained because they are considered flight risks.
Japan’s criminal justice system has long been criticized for detaining people for extended periods to pressure them to confess. The conviction rate for those charged is more than 99 per cent. Kukimoto denied that prosecutors were working to force confessions.
Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission said it had filed criminal complaints against Ghosn, Nissan and Kelly, paving the way for the prosecutors to charge them. A commission official said Monday that Nissan, Ghosn and Kelly were suspected of falsifying reports on millions of dollars’ worth of Ghosn’s income.
Nissan has said that an internal investigation found three types of misconduct: under-reporting income to financial authorities, using investment funds for personal gain and illicit use of company expenses.