TOKYO, Dec 21 (Reuters) – Nissan Motor Co’s jailed ex-chairman, Carlos Ghosn, vowed to restore his good name in court after a month in detention, Japanese public broadcaster NHK said on Friday, quoting his lawyer.
“Things as they stand are absolutely unaceptable,” Ghosn was quoted as saying via his lawyer. “I want to have my position heard and restore my honour in court.”
It was Ghosn’s first comment since his arrest last month for allegedly understating his income by about half over a five-year period from 2010. He was later charged with the same alleged crime covering the past three years.
A call to the office of his lawyer, Motonari Otsuru, went unaswered outside business hours early on Friday. The lawyer has previously declined to return calls for comment on the Ghosn case.
A Tokyo court on Thursday unexpectedly rejected prosecutors’ request to extend Ghosn’s detention, which Japanese media said means he could go free on bail as early as Friday. (Reporting by William Mallard)