Americans sentenced in Japan for Ghosn’s escape return to US
Tokyo, Nov 9 (EFE).- Two Americans sentenced in Japan for aiding the escape of former Nissan president Carlos Ghosn have returned to the United States, where they will serve the remainder of their sentences, their lawyer said Wednesday.
Both are former Green Beret Michael Taylor, 62, and his son Peter, 29, sentenced to two years and one year and eight months in prison, respectively, for their role in the businessman’s flight to Lebanon in December 2019 while awaiting trial in Japan for alleged financial irregularities.
According to information collected Wednesday on the website of the US Federal Bureau of Prisons, Michael Taylor is listed as an inmate in a detention center in Los Angeles, from which he is scheduled to leave on Jan. 1, 2023.
His son, Peter, has already been released on bail and is with relatives in Massachusetts, as confirmed his lawyer told Japanese newspaper Asahi.
Father and son were arrested in Massachusetts in May 2020 and extradited to Japan the following year to stand trial for the escape, which saw Ghosn hide in a musical instrument case that evaded airport controls.
Japan and the US have an extradition agreement, which led to the inmates’ trials in the Asian country, which does not have this type of pact with Lebanon, where Ghosn remains.
The tycoon and former Nissan and Renault president was arrested in Japan in November 2018 accused of financial irregularities and breach of trust.
Ghosn, summoned to testify in Lebanon following the issuance of an Interpol red notice at the request of Japan, denied the charges and said he was the victim of a plot by the Japanese automaker to stop him from negotiating Renault’s greater involvement in the alliance.
The businessman said he fled Japan during his bail because he could not expect a fair trial in the country. EFE
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