Lebanon receives Interpol arrest warrant for Ghosn

BEIRUT - Lebanon received an Interpol arrest warrant on Thursday for former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn, while Turkey launched an investigation into his daring escape from Japan via Istanbul.

Ghosn has become an international fugitive after he revealed on Tuesday he had fled to Lebanon to escape what he called a "rigged" justice system in Japan, where he faces charges relating to alleged financial crimes.

Sources close to Ghosn said a delay to a trial and a strict ban on communicating with his wife motivated him to go ahead with a plan to use a private security company to smuggle him out of Japan via private jet.

The Interpol red notice, which calls on authorities to arrest a wanted person, was received by Lebanon's internal security forces and has yet to be referred to the judiciary, a Lebanese judicial source told Reuters.

A senior Lebanese security official said it was not yet clear if Ghosn would be summoned for questioning over the warrant but said Lebanon does not extradite its citizens to foreign states.

In past cases, where Lebanon has received red notices for Lebanese citizens resident in the country, the suspects have not been detained but their passports have been confiscated and bail has been set, the judicial source said.

Ghosn, who holds French, Lebanese and Brazilian citizenship, has deep ties to Lebanon, the country of his childhood, where his investments include a stake in a bank, real estate and a vineyard.

Trial delayed

Turkish police on Thursday detained seven people, including four pilots, as part of an investigation into Ghosn's passage through the country, a police spokeswoman said.

She said the other detainees were two airport ground staff and one cargo worker and all seven were expected to give statements in court on Thursday.

Flight tracking data suggests Ghosn used two different planes to fly to Istanbul and then to Lebanon.

The sources close to Ghosn said he was prompted to flee after a recent court session when he learned that the second of two trials would be delayed until April 2021.

"They said they needed another whole year to prepare for it ... He was distressed about not being able to see or speak to his wife," one of the sources close to Ghosn said.

A request to see or speak to his wife over Christmas was also denied, the sources added, part of strict conditions set on his bail.

The sources said Ghosn had grown distressed that authorities were pressuring his family to draw a confession from him after his daughter and son were questioned by Japanese prosecutors in the United States in early December.

In just his second public comment since landing in Beirut, Ghosn said in a statement his family played no role whatsoever in his exit from Japan. "I alone arranged for my departure," he said.

How Ghosn was able to jump bail has led to a Japanese investigation into what is seen as an embarrassing security lapse.

Japanese public broadcaster NHK said on Thursday Japanese authorities allowed Ghosn to carry a spare French passport in a locked case while out on bail, potentially shedding some light on how he managed to escape despite having passports held by Japanese lawyers.

Presidency welcomed Ghosn?

The Lebanese presidency on Thursday denied reports that President Michel Aoun had welcomed Ghosn upon his arrival in the country.

Several media outlets reported that he had been greeted by Aoun but a senior presidency official denied the two men had met.

"He was not received at the presidency and did not meet the president," the official said.

Ghosn said he would speak to the media next week. One of his lawyers in Lebanon, Carlos Abou Jaoude, said a date for the press conference had yet to be determined.

Although the exact circumstances of Ghosn's daring escape from Japan remain unclear, colourful rumours abound.

One claim in the Lebanese media is that the auto mogul was sprung from his Tokyo residence in a musical instrument case - a story a source in his entourage denied.

Ghosn was first arrested in Tokyo in November 2018 and faces four charges for alleged financial crimes including deferring part of his salary until after his retirement and concealing this from shareholders, and enriching himself through payments to car dealerships in the Middle East.

Ghosn has repeatedly denied all charges against him, and said that he fled to Lebanon to escape a "rigged" Japanese justice system.

Some Lebanese see Ghosn as a symbol of their country's fabled entrepreneurial genius and a proud representative of its vast diaspora.

The mood has changed since his November 2018 arrest, however, and, weeks into an unprecedented wave of protests against corruption and nepotism, activists saw his return as another manifestation of privilege and impunity for the super-rich.