TOKYO (Reuters) – A Japanese court granted bail to ousted Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn on Tuesday but prosecutors swiftly appealed the decision, delaying an immediate release of the once-feted executive after more than three months in jail.
Prosecutors, however, are demanding that Ghosn – the architect of Nissan’s automaking partnership with France’s Renault and one of the global auto industry’s most celebrated executives – remain in jail pending his trial.
A release would allow Ghosn to frequently meet his lawyers and build a defense ahead of his trial. He faces charges of aggravated breach of trust and under-reporting his compensation to the tune of $82 million at Nissan for nearly a decade.
If convicted on all the charges, he faces up to a decade in jail. The ex-chairman of Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi Motors has denied wrongdoing.
As of Tuesday evening, Ghosn’s bail had not been paid and it is unlikely he will be released during the day, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported.
Nissan declined to comment on the bail decision, which comes a day after the head of Ghosn’s new legal team said he was optimistic the executive would be released with a promise to submit to surveillance.
The case has cast a harsh light globally on Japan’s criminal justice system, which allows suspects to be detained for long periods and prohibits defense lawyers from being present during interrogations that can last eight hours a day.
Public opinion likely played a role in the court’s decision to grant bail, along with assurances from Ghosn’s lawyers that he was prepared to be under any restraint, said Shin Ushijima, a former prosecutor and lawyer.
“The court was partly influenced by the opinion of the entire world,” Ushijima said. “People in general thought (the detention period) is too long. This will change Japan’s criminal procedures.”