Ghosn Escapes!

[Taro Toporific]

Nissan's ex-head Carlos Ghosn in surprise Lebanon arrival
BBC | 2019 Dec. 30
Former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn has reportedly travelled to Lebanon after leaving Japan, media outlets say.
One Lebanese official reportedly told AFP news agency that Mr Ghosn "reached Beirut, but it's unclear how he left Japan"...
...Whether Mr Ghosn has struck a deal with prosecutors or fled is unknown. The businessman holds French and Lebanese passports.
French newspaper Les Echos reports that he allegedly arrived in a private jet which flew to Lebanon from Turkey - although this is unconfirmed. And the Wall Street Journal quotes a source who says Mr Ghosn fled Tokyo, amid reports he did not think he could get a fair trial in the country.
More...

bye-bye-Japan.jpg

[Thanatos' embalmed botfly]

This is FUCKING AWESOME. On Dec 31st to boot. He'd clearly decided "hey, one year is enough, fuck you Japan, how about go fuck yourselves."

The movie dramatisation of this bit is going to be rad. By cloak of night, a portly Christian Bale, in a daft wee trenchcoat, furtively peeking about the hangars, his fake comically-thick black eyebrows all a-furrowed, then waddle/running towards his idling private jet as the huge halogen searchlights sweep across the wet tarmac....

[Mike Oxlong]

Vaya Con Dios Carlos.

[Grumpy Gramps]

Happy New Year and welcome home, Ghosn!

[yanpa]

He's ghosn away for the New Year.

[Taro Toporific]

Ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn flees to Lebanon, slams Japan’s justice system
WashingtonPost.com | December 30, 2019 at 11:37 PM EST
TOKYO —Carlos Ghosn, the former boss of the Nissan-Renault car alliance, said on Tuesday he had left Japan where he was awaiting trial on charges of financial misconduct and arrived in Lebanon....
...“I am now in Lebanon and will no longer be held hostage by a rigged Japanese justice system where guilt is presumed, discrimination is rampant, and basic human rights are denied, in flagrant disregard of Japan’s legal obligations under international law and treaties it is bound to uphold,” Ghosn said in a statement.
“I have not fled justice — I have escaped injustice and political persecution. I can now finally communicate freely with the media, and look forward to starting next week.”
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carlos ghosn.jpg

[Russell]

I am not necessarily sympathetic to him just because others are more corrupt. But the Japanese authorities clearly fucked up. This case appears to show that foreigners are treated in a different way than Japanese nationals by the Japanese justice system. That said, Ghosn does not appear to be as innocent as he claims.

Anyway, I look forward to the trial, and to the press conferences that Ghosn is going to give in the coming months.

He may have escaped, but he is a fugitive now, so he will be arrested as soon as he visits a country that has an extradition treaty with Japan.

As a final note, I wonder how he got out. He must have worn a electronic tag, and there must have been some specialist involved to get it off him. The escape route is also a mystery. Hell, I wouldn't even be surprised if he would've been picked up by a North-Korean mini-submarine...

[Russell]

As an aside, at least he didn't overstay his visa...

[Russell]

Seems Japan has only extradition treaties with the US and South-Korea, so Ghosn is not necessarily restricted to Lebanon if he has travel plans.

[Taro Toporific]

This is FUCKING AWESOME...

Mo' awesome is that...

Stamp Honoring Carlos Ghosn
Aug. 29, 2017 | blogbaladi.com/a-stamp-honoring-carlos-ghosn/
A stamp honoring Carlos Ghosn, one of the world’s most respected business leaders, was unveiled today by LibanPost during a ceremony at Zaitunay Bay. It’s another edition to LibanPost’s series of collectable stamps and the first time that a stamp carries the name of a businessman...more...

6hosn-stamp.jpg

[Russell]

I can read a million words on how car boss Carlos Ghosn escaped 24 hour surveillance in Japan to flee by private jet to Lebanon. Beirut sources saying he hid in a box designed for a musical instrument. Double bass, presumably. Tweet

Edit: link anonimized

[Taro Toporific]

Beirut sources saying he hid in a box designed for a musical instrument. Double bass, presumably.

Carlos Ghosn flee Japan in a musical instrument box?
Lebanese media reported details of Ghosn's escape from Japan through Turkey
Gulf News | 2019-12-31
Beirut: Former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn entered Lebanon using a French passport, Lebanese broadcaster MTV reported on Tuesday, citing an official source.
According to the report, Ghosn was smuggled from Japan in a wooden box inside a plane, and arrived in Turkey before proceeding to Lebanon on a private plane...
...The operation was allegedly carried out by a 'Para-Military' group, coinciding with the presence of his wife in the United States. The group entered his house in Japan under the guise of a band for Christmas dinner.
The reports allege that though the band left after the party was over, Japanese authorities did not know that Carlos Ghosn was hiding in one of the boxes intended for the transfer of musical instruments. He is then said to have left the country from a local airport.
Ghosn had been under house arrest and close surveillance since being granted bail in April, following his initial arrest in November 2018. He had also not been allowed to communicate with his wife until November.
He's a citizen of Lebanon, which doesn't have an extradition treaty with Japan, and is held in high esteem there. He also holds Brazilian and French citizenship. Ghosn's lawyer Junichiro Hironaka said his legal team has all of his passports, adding that it's likely he entered Lebanon using a different name.
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'Carlos-in-Box' ---the "music box" in question

Carlos-in-Box.gif

[Russell]

Not very original of Carlos. And the Japanese authorities could have prevented his escape if they would have studied Dutch history. Yep, a guy escaping prison on 22 March 1621 hidden in a chest of books...

[Taro Toporific]

The movie dramatisation of this bit is going to be rad...

You called it!

Carlos Ghosn’s ‘Great Escape’ Writes a Hollywood Ending to Japanese Imprisonment
GOING GOING GHOSN!
Even before the former head of Renault and Nissan slipped out of Japan he was talking to a producer about a movie deal
.thedailybeast.com Jake Adelstein | Dec. 31, 2019 8:59AM
TOKYO—Former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has made a dramatic escape from Japan, where he was under house arrest, and has now found refuge in Lebanon, where he grew up and owns a home. And if his saga sounds like something out of cinematic thriller, well, stay tuned. Roughly a week before Ghosn made it to Beirut, he was cheerfully discussing a possible movie version of his life with a mega-Hollywood producer in his Tokyo home.
A friend of Ghosn says “He was keen on the idea of a documentary or film exposing his unjust treatment by the Japanese criminal-justice system. I asked him, ‘What do you think will be the conclusion?’
“He made a tiny smile and said, ‘Oh, it will be a surprise ending.’”
Surprise, surprise!
Carlos Ghosn who once found himself trapped in a dire scenario scripted by the Japanese government, Tokyo prosecutors, and a dubious faction of Nissan, has rewritten the narrative. He has now what appears to be a happy ending. And perhaps even Japan’s elite secretly are happy to see him gone. Almost everyone saves face; almost everyone wins.
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[Grumpy Gramps]

Seems Japan has only extradition treaties with the US and South-Korea, so Ghosn is not necessarily restricted to Lebanon if he has travel plans.

On "France 24" they were discussing, whether Ghosn could be extradited from Lebanon to France and then from there to Japan. Though Lebanon has no functioning Government at the moment, so France might not know, who to talk to about it

[Russell]

Seems Japan has only extradition treaties with the US and South-Korea, so Ghosn is not necessarily restricted to Lebanon if he has travel plans.

On "France 24" they were discussing, whether Ghosn could be extradited from Lebanon to France and then from there to Japan. Though Lebanon has no functioning Government at the moment, so France might not know, who to talk to about it

But as far as I understand, Japan has no extradition treaty with France, so wouldn't that be impossible?

It seems, though, that Ghosn entered Lebanon by French identity papers, which are unlikely to have been officially issued by France, so I guess some higher-up bureaucrats in France may be pretty pissed off.

[Mike Oxlong]

How the paper shredders and HDD smashers must have worked long into the night! Probably still going on now...

[Thanatos' embalmed botfly]

Breaking News conference on Chuckie's escape here: https://spraguedawley.com/japan-police- ... sn-escape/

[Grumpy Gramps]

But as far as I understand, Japan has no extradition treaty with France, so wouldn't that be impossible?

Just because they don't have a treaty, doesn't mean, they cannot do it out of courtesy. And France have their own chicken to pluck with Ghosn, so they might as well...

Same problem with Lebanon, whose survival depends to a considerable extent on how much financial help they get from Japan (said France24). If that help dries up, it might as well nudge Lebanon into giving up their lost son, depending on how the political situation there develops.

But until all that happens or not happens, Ghosn can talk freely to anyone he wants and say things that Japan might be uncomfortable with or even disagree on. But Japan is not USA/Russia, so I guess, he is relatively safe from being droned or Sarine'd before his first press conference.

[Thanatos' embalmed botfly]

Japan is not USA/Russia, so I guess, he is relatively safe from being droned or Sarine'd

Japan Seal Team 6

[Taro Toporific]

Breaking News conference on Chuckie's escape here: https://spraguedawley.com/japan-police- ... sn-escape/

Aren't you talking about the wrong kind of "Chuckie box"?

spraguedawley.com | Japan Police Apologise for Carlos Ghosn Escape
...“Chuckie got out by sneaking inside a double bass instrument case as his Xmas party band finished up playing in his apartment. Fucking cameras everywhere there. Today now is hello to more cameras.

Burst-a-Box-Chucky-Mezco-Toyz-animated.gif

[Coligny]

CCTV from escape:

[J.A.F.O]

How have you been Coligny? long time... for both of us I see

[Russell]

CCTV from escape:

Not a Renault...

[Grumpy Gramps]

The Citroën DS doesn't work like this, Coligny! You have to start the engine, then wait a minute or two, until the hydraulics have lifted the suspension to the correct level and only then you can drive off (the rest of the video is authentic, though). You can't just jump in and escape. For that, if you want a Citroën, you need the "Traction Avant" gangster car:

If only I could have one of those...

[wagyl]

The Citroën DS doesn't work like this, Coligny! You have to start the engine, then wait a minute or two, until the hydraulics have lifted the suspension to the correct level and only then you can drive off

Signing in to post exactly that. Not a getaway car, by any means.
That car wouldn't be allowed on the road anyway, no internal rear view mirror.

[matsuki]

On one hand, this means any furriners seeking bail here are likely (sucks teeth) fucked due to this.....on the other hand, hard to imagine Japan's criminal justice system being put under more international scrutiny than this development seems to imply. Ghosn is no saint but his criticisms and experience in Japaneeezu detention do deserve a spotlight.

[Grumpy Gramps]

no internal rear view mirror.

No external mirrors either.

[Taro Toporific]

They just let him "escape," sheesh.

Ghosn seen on security camera leaving Tokyo home alone on Dec 29
japantoday.com | 2020-Jan-03
---Fugitive former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn was caught on security camera leaving his Tokyo home by himself on the day he fled to avoid a Japanese trial, local media reported Friday.
Ghosn was not seen returning home after leaving around noon on Dec 29, public broadcaster NHK said, citing people involved in the investigation.
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bye-bye.gif

[Russell]

Carlos Ghosn might not be as safe in Lebanon as he thought

BEIRUT — If Carlos Ghosn thought he would be safe in Lebanon, he may have been very wrong.

A group of lawyers on Thursday lodged a complaint with Lebanon’s judiciary charging that visits he made to Israel in his position as chairman of Renault and later Nissan constitute a crime under laws forbidding citizens from interacting with Lebanon’s arch-foe, which has been in a state of war with Lebanon for the past 60 years.

That could put him in a tougher position than any charges of embezzlement or financial wrongdoing, which are the norm among elites in Lebanon’s deeply corrupt society. Collaborating with the enemy is regarded as a serious offense, potentially more serious than the charges the former Nissan executive was facing when he slipped out of Japan earlier this week and showed up in Beirut, expecting a warm welcome.

If found guilty, the Brazilian-born Ghosn, who also holds Lebanese and French nationalities, could face a prison sentence of up to 15 years in Lebanon, according to judicial officials.

The prevailing narrative, that Ghosn is a hero in Lebanon, a native son who set out into the world and made his fortune, seems about to take a big dent.

“If he thinks that he actually could be protected here, it’s not going to happen, because according to Lebanese law he visited Israel, which is an enemy state,” said Mohammed Obeid, a Lebanese political analyst.

“First, he’s corrupted, and, second, he’s a traitor. So how can he be a Lebanese hero?” he asked. “Maybe he is popular with some of his friends, but to most Lebanese he is a collaborator.”

Ghosn’s new Lebanon headache came as the international community scrambled to unravel the mystery of how he managed to skip bail in Japan, where his passports were supposedly held under lock and key by his lawyers and the Japanese authorities.

[...]

Lebanon’s Justice Ministry said Thursday that it has received a wanted notice for Ghosn issued by Interpol, the international police organization. But while Interpol “red notices” alert police about internationally wanted fugitives, there is no compulsion for any country to arrest the subject.

A senior Lebanese security official said that Lebanon did not intend to act on the notice because Ghosn is not wanted for any crimes in Lebanon. “Once he is legally in the country, we don’t have the authority to arrest him,” the official said.

[...]

“He did not kill anyone or commit an international crime. Still, we have to watch developments as things are becoming more complicated,” he added.

[...]

Independent legal experts contrast the harsh treatment that Ghosn received in Japan — a total of more than 120 days’ detention in an unheated cell and hours of interrogation without a lawyer present on charges that carried a maximum sentence of 15 years — with the way Japanese business executives often get away with a slap on the wrist for much more serious crimes.

Nevertheless, major questions remain unanswered about Ghosn’s tenure as head of Nissan and Renault, two car companies whose fortunes he turned around and merged into a powerful alliance. Ghosn was charged with four counts of financial misconduct and aggravated breach of trust, including by allegedly underreporting his income and enriching himself through payments to dealerships in the Middle East.

Whether things get really complicated for Ghosn in Lebanon could be subject to Lebanon’s labyrinthine politics. The country is teetering from a wave of popular protests demanding substantial reforms to a system that typically divides powerful positions according to sect. Separately, a financial crisis is pushing the country toward total economic collapse.

Ghosn is known to have powerful allies, including the country’s foreign minister, Gebran Bassil, and Bassil’s father-in-law, Lebanese President Michel Aoun. They are among the leaders battling for influence over positions in the next government with other Lebanese factions, including the powerful Hezbollah movement.

There is a risk, said Sami Nader, who heads the Lebanese Institute for Strategic Affairs, that Ghosn could become a political football in the wider Lebanese power struggle, a bargaining chip to be tossed into the negotiations for a new government. “The issue is already internationalized,” he said. “The question now is whether it will also become Lebanonized.”

The lawyers who filed the suit said they had no political motives other than to assert their sense of justice. Ali Abbas, one of the lawyers involved, said he supports the popular revolution against Lebanon’s government. It is an outrage, he said, that Ghosn should be welcomed back to Lebanon when he had dealings with Israel, a country whose wars against Lebanon have killed Lebanese civilians.

“Tolerating normalization with the Zionist entity (meaning Israel) is not acceptable and the attempt to show Carlos Ghosn as a national hero and a redeemer of the economic crisis in spite of his dealings with Israel is something that we civil society activists will not accept,” said the case they filed with the office of the public prosecutor.

Ghosn does not deny that he has visited Israel, friends said. Photographs circulated on social media showing him meeting with then-Israeli President Shimon Peres and then-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert during a 2008 visit to seal a deal between Renault and Israel to produce electric cars.

“He is an international CEO with three passports, and he visited Israel on a business trip representing the companies he heads,” said Ricardo Karam, a friend who is a TV personality in Lebanon.

The photographs are more than 10 years old, however, and under Lebanon’s statute of limitations, those visits can’t be prosecuted. The lawyers allege that Ghosn visited more recently, and it is now up to the Lebanese judiciary to investigate whether that is true, said Public Prosecutor Ghassan Oweidat.

He said he expected to announce the result of the investigation next Thursday, and if charges are brought, he would then be ordered to appear before a military tribunal.

The law on visiting Israel has been unevenly applied in the past, with some citizens serving lengthy sentences and others being let off. The Oscar-nominated director Ziad Doueiri was detained in 2017 and taken before a military tribunal for filming part of one of his movies in Israel, then released.

It may not come to that, said Nader. “He can play on the divisions in Lebanese society and among Lebanese officials,” he said. “In the Lebanese system, you can always find a way.”

But, he added, “his journey is not over yet.”

More

Hmm, facing up to 15 years in prison in Lebanon. That is the same as he faced in Japan. But, he could always flee to Japan from Lebanon. I'm sure they'll receive him with open arms...

Edit: links anonimized