BEIRUT: A French judicial security mission is set to question former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn, who has Lebanese and French nationality.
The mission will arrive in Lebanon on Jan. 18 to question the 66-year-old fugitive.
A judicial source told Arab News: “The Cassation Prosecutor, Judge Imad Kabalan, is the one who will interrogate Ghosn, and the French delegation has the right to participate in the interrogation.”
The source added that the interrogation is part of the French case against Ghosn regarding an alleged misuse of Renault funds in a birthday party he hosted for his wife, Carole, in the Palace of Versailles.
Ghosn is one of the most important and senior executives in the global auto industry. He saved Nissan, one of Japan’s largest car companies, from bankruptcy in 2000.
He chaired the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, the largest of its kind in the automotive industry. Japanese authorities arrested Ghosn in 2018 for financial offenses and he was imprisoned for 130 days. He moved to Japan in the late 1990s and revolutionized the practice of corporate management.
In March 2019, after Ghosn was placed under house arrest in Japan, he fled the country and entered Lebanon through Istanbul. Lebanese authorities faced criticism over a refusal to hand Ghosn over to Japanese authorities. But officials claimed that, because he is a Lebanese citizen, he should be tried on Lebanese soil by the Lebanese judiciary.
Authorities in France have started at least two investigations related to Ghosn, one of which is related to suspicious transactions in Renault, in addition to suspicious payments for trips and special events paid by the Renault-Nissan holding company, based in the Netherlands. The second investigation is focused on the misuse of company funds to pay for the Versailles party.
Lebanon’s courts previously denied a lawsuit brought against Ghosn by Lebanese activists that claimed he entered Israel — an enemy state. The judiciary said that his entry to Israel was “outdated.”
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