Simultaneous arrest

More than six months after the top-secret in-house investigation began, preparations for the arrest entered the final stages. The individuals facing arrest were Ghosn and his right-hand man, Greg Kelly, an American who served as a representative board member.

But one hurdle was the fact that both were often away from Japan. Unless the two were arrested at the same time, one of them might flee abroad.

After consulting with Nissan officials, prosecutors in the special investigation department decided to have the two called back to Japan ostensibly to attend a board meeting. That day, Nov. 19, had finally arrived.



Nissan Motor President Hiroto Saikawa holds a news conference after the arrest of Carlos Ghosn, the company chairman.

In the end, Nissan President Hiroto Saikawa was also told beforehand about the progress in the investigation. When Ghosn and Kelly were arrested after their arrival in Japan on the evening of Nov. 19, Nissan immediately issued a news release.

Later that night, Saikawa held a news conference at which he said, “Going beyond the word regrettable, I feel a strong anger and am very disappointed.”

For the first arrest, prosecutors alleged a huge under-reporting of executive remuneration. Ghosn was arrested on suspicion of only reporting about half of the annual remuneration that was actually about 2 billion yen a year.