Ghosn Granted Bail in Japan

Former Nissan-Renault Chairman Carlos Ghosn has been granted bail after being detained for 107 days in a Tokyo jail on charges of financial wrongdoing.

Ghosn, who had been denied bail twice before, was ordered by the Tokyo District Court to post a 1 billion-yen ($8.9 million) bond, according to media reports in Japan. His new legal defense team filed his latest request last week.

It isn’t clear when Ghosn might be released. Prosecutors are likely to appeal the decision later today, and a final court decision may not come until a few days later.

Ghosn’s previous attempts to win bail were rejected by the court, which described him as a flight risk and who might try to tamper with evidence. Ghosn had offered to turn over his passport, wear an electronic tether, live in a guarded Tokyo apartment and meet any bail terms.

In his latest bail request, Ghosn reportedly agreed to even stricter monitoring and further limits on who he would be allowed to contact. He continues to declare himself innocent of all charges, claiming he is the victim of an internal conspiracy at Nissan.

When he was arrested, Ghosn was chairman and CEO of Renault and chair of Nissan, Mitsubishi Motors and the entity that manages the alliance of all three carmakers. He has since been stripped of all those titles.

Prosecutors claim he failed to report 9.1 billion yen ($81.3 million) in deferred income, transferred 1.9 billion yen ($17 million) in personal investment losses to Nissan and made illegal payments totaling 1.6 billion ($14.3 million) to a Saudi businessman.

Under Japanese law, defendants may be incarcerated indefinitely as long as prosecutors periodically file new charges. Bail typically is withheld unless defendants first agree to plead guilty. Ghosn’s treatment has drawn international criticism.