Jan 02 (Japan Times) - The usually staid Japanese media lambasted the “cowardly†Carlos Ghosn on Wednesday, after the tycoon jumped bail and fled to Lebanon to avoid trial in Japan.
“Running away is a cowardly act that mocks Japan’s justice system,†said the Yomiuri Shimbun, with Ghosn facing multiple charges of financial misconduct — all of which he denies.
By leaving the country, Ghosn has “lost the opportunity to prove his innocence and vindicate his honor,†the paper added, noting that the court, his defense lawyers and immigration control officials also bore some blame in the affair.
The liberal Tokyo Shimbun also said Ghosn’s actions had made a mockery of the Japanese justice system.
“The defendant Ghosn insists he escaped political persecution… but travelling abroad without permission is against the conditions of his bail, and mocks the Japanese justice system,†the paper wrote.
“There is a high probability that the trial will not be held, and his argument that he wants to prove his innocence is now in question.â€
Some media noted that the decision to give him bail — seen by some as unusual at the time — now looks unwise.
Prosecutors had argued at the time that he was a flight risk with powerful connections, but Ghosn himself had said he wanted to be tried to prove his innocence.
One of his defense lawyers at the time has said he was such a famous face that there was no chance he would be able to slip away undetected.
