Ghosn Says He Is Victim of Nissan Plot -- WSJ

By Sean McLain

This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (January 31, 2019).

TOKYO -- Carlos Ghosn said he was the victim of a plot by Nissan Motor Co. executives who opposed his plans for Nissan's alliance with Renault SA, according to the Nikkei business daily.

The former Nissan chairman has been detained since Nov. 19. Tokyo prosecutors charged him with underreporting his compensation in eight years of Nissan financial statements and with causing Nissan to pay the company of a Saudi Arabian friend who helped him with a personal financial problem.

Mr. Ghosn has said he is innocent of the charges. On Wednesday, he went a step further, saying in his first interview since his arrest that the charges came about because of "plot and treason," according to the Nikkei, which interviewed him in at the Tokyo Detention House.

Nissan Chief Executive Hiroto Saikawa has denied there was a plot to remove Mr. Ghosn. Mr. Saikawa has said an internal investigation uncovered wrongdoing by Mr. Ghosn and that the findings were handed over to Tokyo prosecutors, who arrested Mr. Ghosn.

A Nissan spokesman said Wednesday that the events that led to Mr. Ghosn's arrest were the result of what Mr. Ghosn is accused of doing.

Mr. Ghosn said he spoke in September to Mr. Saikawa, the Nissan chief executive, about plans to bring together Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. under a holding company.

Mr. Saikawa said Jan. 24 that it wasn't the right time to talk about restructuring the alliance among the three auto makers. Renault owns 43% of Nissan, while Nissan owns 15% of Renault and 34% of Mitsubishi.

Write to Sean McLain at sean.mclain@wsj.com

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January 31, 2019 02:47 ET (07:47 GMT)

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