TOKYO, April 3 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo prosecutors are considering bringing another criminal charge against former Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn over suspected payments made by the automaker to a dealer in Oman, local media reported Wednesday.
Citing informed sources, Japan's public broadcaster NHK said that prosecutors suspect a sum exceeding 34 million U.S. dollars was transferred to a Nissan dealership in Oman, which was operated for seven years until last year by an acquaintance of Ghosn.
The fresh allegations suggest that Ghosn may have made the payments from a CEO reserve fund that the ex-auto tycoon had discretion over under the pretense of sales incentives from Nissan.
Sources have said that the money was then transferred from a private bank account opened in Lebanon by the Omani dealer, funneled through an investment firm run by the Omani and sent to a company account belonging to a family member of Ghosn.
The funds are suspected by prosecutors thereafter of being used, at least in part, to purchase a 1.6 billion yen (14.35 million U.S. dollar) luxury yacht for use by Ghosn's family and others, the sources said.
They added that a special investigation team from the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors' Office is consulting with the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office as to whether to indict Ghosn again for aggravated breach of trust.
Ghosn's defense team, however, has maintained that the money transferred to Oman was made at the request of his subordinate and was a permissible payment made to the dealer for his many years of service.
His team has also said that the purchase of the multi-million dollar yacht has noting to do with Nissan.
Ghosn, who was arrested on Nov. 19 on charges of under-reporting his remuneration for years in Nissan's securities reports presented to Japanese regulators, is also facing a separate charge of aggravated breach of trust, for allegedly transferring private investment losses to Nissan.
The 65-year-old, who was released on bail on March 6 after spending 108 days in a detention facility in Tokyo, has denied the charges and is gearing up to give his first, highly anticipated press conference.
"I'm getting ready to tell the truth about what's happening. Press conference on Thursday, April 11," the former auto exec wrote in a Twitter post on Wednesday.
As the Tokyo District Court along with prosecutors are gearing up to hold Ghosn's trial, with the first hearing slated for September, his defense team has requested the Tokyo court to separate the former CEO's trial from that of Nissan's.
Nissan, for its part, is also facing charges of financial improprieties connected to making false financial disclosures.
In terms of Ghosn's Tweet earlier Wednesday, Ghosn's lawyer Junichiro Hironaka, known for winning acquittals in high-profile cases, said that the contents of the newly-announced press conference are being worked out along with his legal team.
In March, Nissan Motor Co., Renault SA and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. announced that they would be reorganizing their partnership following the arrest of ex-chairman Ghosn, with the aim of making a new internal body to oversee their alliance.
The three automakers said that a four-member board would be at the helm of overseeing the newly-structured alliance, which will be chaired by Renault chief Jean-Dominique Senard.
The four-member board will comprise Senard, Nissan President and CEO Hiroto Saikawa, Mitsubishi Motors Chairman and CEO Osamu Masuko and Renault CEO Thierry Bollore.
While Ghosn was removed from his post at Nissan following his arrest, he still holds his seat on the automaker's board as a director.
Ghosn had a request and subsequent appeal rejected by the Tokyo District Court to attend Nissan's board meeting, as part of his bail agreement prohibits him from having contact with Nissan executives or others potentially involved in the case against him.
The once-revered auto bigwig, under his bail conditions, has camera surveillance installed at the entrance way to his residence, and is only allowed limited access to computers and mobile phones.
Nissan said it is imminently planning to oust Ghosn as a board member at an extraordinary shareholders' meeting slated to be held on April 8.
After his arrest, Ghosn was also dismissed as chairman of Mitsubishi Motors Corp.
He was also replaced as chairman of Renault SA in the three-way alliance he created after he tendered his resignation while in detention in Tokyo.
Under the new body, the four-member board said the fundamental ownership structure, however, would remain the same.
Currently, Renault owns a 43.4 percent stake in Nissan, with Nissan in turn holding a 15 percent stake in its French partner.
Nissan has no voting rights as far as Renault is concerned, although it owns a 34 percent stake in Mitsubishi Motors Corp.
