Ex-Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn remains detained after new arrest

Dec. 20 (UPI) — Former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn remains detained after his arrest Friday in Japan on additional allegations of misconduct.

Prosecutors added a charge of breach of trust to extend Ghosn’s detention at least another 10 days beyond the past one month, NHK reported. Ghosn’s lawyers declined comment on the re-arrest.

One day earlier, the Tokyo District Court refused to extend the detention of Ghosn and company executive Greg Kelly. Ghosn’s lawyers had hoped to free their client by posting bail but it is now not possible with the new arrest.

Ghosn is additionally accused of transferring his personal investment losses to Nissan in an “aggravated breach of trust,” resulting in a financial loss of about $16.6 million for the automaker, Bloomberg reported.

The Japanese securities watchdog had questioned the legality of the transfer during the 2008 financial crisis.

The new allegations, as a violation of of Japan’s Companies Act, are considered more serious with a maximum prison sentence of up to 10 years and a $90,000 fine.

Ghosn was first arrested Nov. 19 at Tokyo’s Haneda airport

On Dec. 10, Ghosn and Kelly were charged with underreporting about $43 million worth of income in Nissan’s annual reports for the five fiscal years through March 2015.

On the same day, they were arrested on additional allegations they failed to report another $36 million for the three fiscal years through this past March.

Earlier this week, Kelly’s wife, Donna “Dee” Kelly, published a video statement urging prosecutors to release her husband so that he can receive surgery for a spinal ailment.

“Greg has been wrongly accused as part of a power grab by several Nissan executives headed up by the current CEO, [Hiroto] Saikawa,” she said in the video provided to the Financial Times. “Greg and Mr. Ghosn fully believe they did not break the law. The truth of this will come out.”

Nissan said it had uncovered “ample evidence of serious misconduct” by Ghosn and Kelly in its internal investigation