PARIS — French prosecutors have issued international arrest warrants for Carlos Ghosn and four people they say are linked to a car dealership in Oman.
An investigating judge issued five international arrest warrants against Mr Ghosn, the former head of Nissan Motor Co. NSANY -3.02% and Renault, and the current owner or former director of the Omani company Suhail Bahwan Automobiles, a vehicle dealership in Oman, prosecutors said in the Paris suburb of Nanterre with the Wall Street Journal. They allege Mr Ghosn funneled millions of dollars in Renault funds through the Omani car dealer for his personal use, including the purchase of a 120ft yacht.
Mr Ghosn fled a financial misconduct trial in Japan to Lebanon while hiding in a box of music equipment.
At a press conference in Beirut in January, former auto executive Carlos Ghosn said he was fleeing injustice in Japan. WSJ’s Chip Cummins discusses what Mr Ghosn said and didn’t say, and what he revealed about possible next steps. Photo: Maya Alleruzzo/Associated Press
After his escape, Mr Ghosn initially welcomed the French investigation and said he believed in the French justice system, which would allow him to prove his innocence. A spokeswoman for Mr Ghosn declined to comment on the warrants.
The most recent arrest warrant does not change anything about Mr. Ghosn’s personal situation. After fleeing Japan, he remains in Lebanon, where he lives as an international refugee in a house that the Japanese carmaker bought for him. Lebanon does not extradite its citizens – and Mr Ghosn has citizenship of Lebanon, France and Brazil.
However, the warrants are another legal blow to Mr Ghosn’s reputation. He has portrayed himself as a victim of a Japanese justice system that he believes is unfair and based on guilt. Japanese officials say he would have had a fair trial had he stayed in Japan.
People close to Mr Ghosn are not ruling out that he may one day go to France to stand trial, although they say this is complicated by the fact that Lebanon currently holds his passports. It could also mean that he is separated from his wife for an extended period of time. Japanese prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for Carole Ghosn after her husband fled.
In an interview with WSJ’s Nick Kostov, Carlos Ghosn said he regrets not taking the opportunity to work in the US in 2009, where he would not have been “crucified” for his salary. The former auto executive recently fled Japan, where he faces charges of financial misconduct. Photo: Jacob Russell for The Wall Street Journal
She is not a French citizen and could be extradited to Japan if she tries to leave Lebanon, say people close to Mr Ghosn. Mr. Ghosn cannot be extradited from France to Japan. France generally does not extradite its citizens and Mr Ghosn has French citizenship.
One of the French arrest warrants is aimed at Suhail Bahwan, the billionaire whose sprawling conglomerate owns the Oman dealership, according to people familiar with the matter. Mr Bahwan has a number of connections in France, where he owns property. One of his daughters, Hind Bahwan, is Chair of the Omani French Friendship Association and received France’s highest award, the Legion of Honour, in 2019.
The other arrest warrants target two of Mr Bahwan’s sons as well as the Omani trader’s former manager, the people said. Suhail Bahwan Automobiles sells tens of thousands of Renault and Nissan vehicles in the Middle East every year.
write to Nick Kostov at [email protected]
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Appeared in the print edition of April 22, 2022 as “French issue of arrest warrants against Ghosn”.