The Carlos Ghosn saga kicked off several years ago now, but the case is far from being settled. Several years after the disgraced auto exec fled to Lebanon, the British Virgin Islands High Court ruled that he must surrender a superyacht allegedly purchased using funds he siphoned away from the automaker.
The 121-foot vessel must now be surrendered to Nissan Motor Company. Ghosn, his wife, and a company they used to buy the ship were also ordered to pay $32 million in damages. Ferretti, an Italian luxury boat builder, constructed the yacht, which is said to have seven bathrooms and five main cabins.
Ghosn allegedly funneled the money through a chain of shady business entities with some of it traced to a California investments business and a company tied to the yacht’s purchase. The court’s judgment said, “It is in the Court’s respectful judgment clear as a matter of fact that the sums paid away from Nissan/NME [Nissan Middle East] were for purposes other than the proper purposes of Nissan and NME; and the payments to Mr. Ghosn, Beauty Yachts, and Shogun were made in order to benefit Mr. Ghosn or his nominees.”
The former Nissan and Renault executive’s legal troubles continue elsewhere as well. Despite his relative freedom in Lebanon, he remains on Interpol’s red notice wanted list, and courts in other countries have charged him with serious financial crimes. His life in the Middle Eastern country appears to be safe for now, however, as it does not have extradition agreements that could endanger his freedom.
[Images: Shutterstock]
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