Carlos Ghosn sues Nissan for $1 billion in damages
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The former CEO of Nissan Motor Co., Carlos Ghosn, filed a $1 billion lawsuit against the Japanese carmaker for dismissing him in 2018 and organizing his arrest.
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Carlos Ghosn during an interview with AP in the north of Beirut, Lebanon, on Tuesday, May 25, 2021. (AP)
According to Bloomberg, Carlos Ghosn, the former CEO of Nissan Motor Co., filed a $1 billion lawsuit against the Japanese carmaker for dismissing him in 2018 and organizing his arrest for suspected financial wrongdoing, alleging "deep damage" to his finances and image.
Ghosn filed his allegations with the public prosecutor in Lebanon's Court of Cassation, where he has lived since his escape from Japan in late 2019 to avoid prosecution. Bloomberg obtained a copy of the lawsuit filed on May 18 and translated it.
“The serious and sensitive accusations against me will linger in people’s minds for years,” Ghosn stated, adding that he would suffer from them for the remainder of his life, "as they have persistent and lingering impacts, even if based on mere suspicion.”
Ghosn no longer owns a stake in the company and he is seeking $588 million in unpaid wages and fees, along with $500 million in damages.
Renault dispatched Ghosn to turn around Nissan, which had been suffering before getting a capital injection from the French corporation, in 1999. He then became the CEO of both firms as well as the chairman of the partnership.
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Ghosn's lawsuit also includes other persons, but a representative from Nissan stated that the company had not yet received the lawsuit and therefore could not comment on the matter.
Lebanon does not extradite citizens, and Ghosn has expressed that Japan's judicial system is "rigged" and "violates the most basic principles of humanity."
Ghosn has attempted to clear his name since he arrived in Lebanon, stating via phone to Bloomberg “They cannot plot a lie and cheat and get away with it.".
“This is just a small response to the damage they created. I don’t think they can right the wrong, because the damage is so deep — this is intended to repair part of the damage that has been done.”
Ghosn is a Brazilian-born French businessman of Lebanese descent. The Japanese authorities arrested him in Tokyo in November 2018 and accused him of underreporting income during his time as the chairman of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance.
In a statement made on New Year's Eve in 2019, Ghosn said he was in Lebanon and that he had fled to escape political persecution.
French prosecutors sought international arrest warrants for Ghosn and four individuals they allege to have ties to an auto dealer in Oman, claiming they helped the car titan siphon millions of euros from Renault.
They also claim Ghosn used the Omani vehicle distributor to divert millions of dollars from Renault for his own purposes, including the purchase of a 120-foot yacht.
He reportedly fled to Lebanon while hiding in a musical equipment box to escape trial in Japan on charges of financial malfeasance.
