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Ex-Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn indicted for breach of trust

By Allen Cone
Carlos Ghosn, the former Nissan Motors Co. chairma, was indicted on new financial charges Friday in a Tokyo court. File photo by Keizo Mori/UPI
Carlos Ghosn, the former Nissan Motors Co. chairma, was indicted on new financial charges Friday in a Tokyo court. File photo by Keizo Mori/UPI | License Photo

Jan. 11 (UPI) -- Former Nissan Motors Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn was indicted on new financial charges Friday in a Tokyo court.

Ghosn, 64, was charged with aggravated breach of trust for allegedly transferring $17 million in personal investment losses to Nissan in 2008 as well understating his compensation by $37 million for three years through March 2018, the Nikkei Asian Review reported.

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Last month, he was indicted for underreporting his pay by around $46 million between 2010 and 2015.

Ghosn has been in jail since his arrest on Nov. 19 at Tokyo's Haneda airport. Nissan dismissed Ghosn as chairman shortly after his arrest, but he remains chairman and CEO of Renault, which is the largest shareholder and partner of Nissan. The French company has assigned his duties to other executives.

Prosecutors expected him to be detained until the trial begins, which could be as long as six months, The Wall Street Journal reported.

"Generally speaking, it's extremely rare for a court to grant bail before a trial begins," Motonari Otsuru told reporters. "That's our main concern, and I think Mr Ghosn is very troubled by this."

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Ex-Nissan executive Greg Kelly, who was arrested at the same time for his alleged role in helping his boss understate his pay, was released on a bail $635,000 on Dec. 25.

On Tuesday, Ghosn appeared before a judge in a Tokyo court for the first time. He denied the allegations against him, saying he has been wrongfully accused, is innocent and the accusations are merit-less.

One day later, he came down with a 102-degree fever.

"I recently learned that my husband is suffering from a high fever at the detention center in Tokyo, but my information is limited to news reports as no one in his family has been allowed to contact him since 19 November," wife, Carole Ghosn, said in a statement. "We are fearful and very worried his recovery will be complicated while he continues to endure such harsh conditions and unfair treatment."

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