Why im not fleeing japan

Ghosn remains a fugitive in his childhood home of Lebanon, which doesn't have an extradition treaty with Japan. In Japan he faces charges he understated his compensation in Nissan's financial statements by 9. Greg Kelly, a former Nissan executive charged with helping Ghosn hide his compensation, is also on trial in Tokyo, with a judgment expected next year.

Both Ghosn and Kelly deny the charges. The Taylors have 14 days to appeal the verdict and sentence. Subscribe for our daily curated newsletter to receive the latest exclusive Reuters coverage delivered to your inbox. More from Reuters. It was not clear when a trial would take place - the fear was it could take years - and Mr Ghosn faced a further 15 years in prison if convicted, in a country which has a It was during a period of house arrest, when Mr Ghosn was told he would not be allowed to have any contact with his wife, Carole, that he decided to find a way out.

He said the idea of using a large box that would normally contain musical instruments "was the most logical one, particularly that around this time there were a lot of concerts in Japan".

But how would someone once so famous - now infamous - in Japan be able to get from his home in the capital to an airport and make his escape? The plan was, said Mr Ghosn, to behave as normally as possible on the day. Mr Ghosn would have to swap the suits he'd worn for years as a high profile executive in the global automotive sector for something a little more casual. Think jeans and trainers. From Tokyo, Mr Ghosn travelled by bullet train to Osaka where a private jet was waiting at the local airport to depart.

But first, the box, which was waiting for Mr Ghosn at a nearby hotel. If you miss it, you're going to pay with your life, with the life of a hostage in Japan'. Mr Ghosn was transported from the hotel to the airport by two men, who were posing as musicians. In all, Mr Ghosn reckons he was in the box for around an hour and a half, though it felt like it lasted "one year and a half".

The private jet took off on time, and Mr Ghosn - now free from his confines - flew through the night, swapped planes in Turkey before landing in Beirut the next morning. Lebanon does not have an extradition treaty with Japan so Mr Ghosn has been allowed to remain there. Also facing jail is Greg Kelly, Mr Ghosn's former colleague at Nissan, who remains under house arrest in Tokyo over allegations he helped his former boss disguise his earnings.

Mr Kelly denies the charges. Mr Ghosn said: "I've been told that the end of [Greg Kelly's] trial will be probably by the end of this year. And then God knows what's going to be the results of this trial for, as I said, a bogus reason.

He added: "I feel sorry for all the people who are victim of the hostage justice system in Japan, all of them. This part-Lebanese, part-Brazilian citizen of the world is all of these things. He lived more like a head of state than a head of industry. A company party at the Palace of Versailles, coincidentally - he says - on his 60th birthday, saw him hold court with waiting staff dressed in pre-revolutionary garb.

As simultaneous head of Renault and Nissan - he was a lightning rod of unease for some at both companies. Those at Nissan feared he would oversee a French coup of the traditional Japanese business he saved.

And those at Renault disliked his shunning of the establishment and appearance in the pages of Paris society magazines.

Any global chief executive has to be sensitive to political nuance. The fact that Carlos Ghosn, after nearly 20 years at Nissan, was totally blindsided by his arrest in Tokyo suggests he had lost touch with the organisations he was trying to bring closer together.