Detained tycoon Carlos Ghosn faces months more jail time after a Japanese court rejected the former Nissan boss’s request for bail, despite his offer to wear an electronic tag and stay in a rented Tokyo flat.
Ghosn, who has been imprisoned for 65 days on allegations of financial misconduct including understating his income and aggravated breach of trust, denies wrongdoing.
But the 64-year-old’s lawyers said he could be in custody for months, because of Japan’s practice of extending the pre-trial detention of defendants who refuse to confess.
In a second attempt to plea for bail, Ghosn’s lawyers had offered his French, Brazilian and Lebanese passports, to hire guards to monitor him, wear an electronic tag and rent a new flat in Tokyo, where none of his documents or potential evidence was in situ.
The court’s rejection of bail means Ghosn’s status isn’t expected to be reviewed again until March 10.
His incarceration has prompted criticism of Japan’s justice system, which allows interrogations to take place without a lawyer, and permits suspects to be detained for over three weeks before being formally charged.
Ghosn said: “I am not guilty.”
