Tokyo prosecutors plan to build a fresh case against former Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn, this time for an alleged misuse of the automaker's funds paid to an Omani distributor for sales promotion, sources close to the matter said Wednesday.
The latest move came as Ghosn, who was released on bail on March 6 after he was arrested in November, prepares to defend himself against two charges -- one of violating the financial instruments law by underreporting remuneration and the other of aggravated breach of trust in relation to the alleged transfer of private investment losses to Nissan.
The 65-year-old surprised media the same day with a post on a Twitter account, said to have been created in April, that announced his first press conference since his release on bail will be held on April 11.
"I'm getting ready to tell the truth about what's happening," the message from Ghosn, who maintains his innocence, said.
Ghosn's release from the Tokyo Detention House was conditional on restrictions addressing concerns about potential evidence tampering, including surveillance cameras at the entrance to his residence and limiting his computer use to weekdays at his lawyer's office.
A defense lawyer for Ghosn said the Twitter post did not breach the conditions of his 1 billion yen ($9 million) bail.
The prosecutors are investigating another allegation of aggravated breach of trust against Ghosn in connection with the use of part of 3.5 billion yen paid to the Omani distributor since 2012 as sales incentives from Nissan's so-called CEO reserve, a pool of funds Ghosn could use at his discretion at the time.
(Photo of Ghosn in Tokyo two days after being released on bail)
Some of the funds were allegedly transferred via investment firm Good Faith Investments, run by a senior official of the Omani distributor, to a company represented by Ghosn's wife. The money may have been spent to purchase a yacht worth 1.6 billion yen for the use of Ghosn's family and other items, the sources said.
A U.S.-based investment company where Ghosn's son serves as CEO is also suspected to have received some money from Good Faith Investments, according to the sources.
The prosecutors have likely requested U.S. authorities' cooperation in investigating the allegation, they said.
The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors' Office is expected to make the final decision on whether to build the case after consulting the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office.
Ghosn, initially arrested on Nov. 19, has already been charged with underreporting his remuneration by 9.1 billion yen over the eight years through March last year in Nissan's securities reports to Japanese regulators.
The Nissan executive, who holds Brazilian, French and Lebanese nationality, has also been indicted for transferring private investment losses to Nissan's books and paying $14.7 million in company funds to a Saudi businessman who extended credit to him.
The arrest of Ghosn, who was credited with saving Nissan when it was teetering on the brink of bankruptcy in the late 1990s, has rocked the auto alliance of Nissan, Renault SA and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. that he created.
Since his arrest, Ghosn has been dismissed as chairman of Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors, and replaced as CEO and chairman of Renault. Nissan is set to hold an extraordinary shareholders' meeting Monday to remove Ghosn from its board.
Given that Nissan itself has also been indicted over the underreporting of the remuneration of its former chairman, Ghosn's defense team has requested that the Tokyo District Court hold separate trials for him and Nissan presided over by different judges to ensure fairness, one of his lawyers, Junichiro Hironaka, said Tuesday.
The court currently plans to try Ghosn, his close aide Greg Kelly and Nissan together for alleged understatement of the former chairman's remuneration, according to Hironaka.
"Nissan is not a defendant but a prosecutor," Hironaka said, noting that Ghosn's arrest came as a result of a plea bargain deal struck between prosecutors and executives at the Japanese automaker, which had been conducting a months-long internal probe into allegations of financial misconduct by its former boss.
Related coverage:
Lawyers call for separate Ghosn, Nissan trials to ensure fairness
Nissan urged by governance panel to end Ghosn's era of one-man rule
Trial of ex-Nissan boss Ghosn to start possibly in Sept.: lawyers
