Lebanon has imposed a travel ban on former auto executive Carlos Ghosn the day after he spoke to the media following his escape from Japan.
CNN reports that Lebanese prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat issued the travel ban on Thursday to prevent Ghosn from leaving the country. The ban also comes roughly one week after Interpol issued a Red Notice confirming Ghosn is wanted by police in Japan.
Seeking Justice: Ghosn Lashes Out On Japan And Nissan, Says He Was Treated “Brutally” By Prosecutors
Earlier in the week, Ghosn spoke to the world’s media from Beirut, Lebanon about the case against him brought forward by Japanese prosecutors. He provided evidence he claims refutes the charges he has been hit with, including underreporting of his compensation, and detailed the conditions under which he was held in prison.
One particularly interesting thing Ghosn said during his press conference was that he wants to find a country where he can be tried fairly and have his name cleared. He is also a citizen of Brazil and France, neither of which would extradite him to Japan, but the travel ban seems to rule out the possibility of him being tried anywhere other than Lebanon.
Ghosn repeatedly stated that by fleeing Japan he did not escape justice but instead fled from “injustice,” claiming that there was virtually no chance he would receive a fair trial. Japan’s courts have a 99.4 per cent conviction rate and Ghosn was resigned to the fact that if he didn’t flee, he would likely be convicted and die in Japan.