Carlos Ghosn Added to Interpol's Most Wanted List, Sans Mugshot
Carlos Ghosn‘s daring escape from the physical boundaries of the Japanese legal system has already been entered into the annals of automotive history and filed under “legendary” status. Guilty or not, the former Nissan executive outdid most Hollywood heist movies by sneaking out of the country while still under government supervision. Nobody in the media can help themselves from discussing it, not even this outlet.
However, he’s far from being free. He’s still wanted in Japan for alleged financial misconduct and the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) has issued a Red Notice — which is a global bulletin for authorities to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action. Hopefully he’s famous enough for cops to identify from memory, as Interpol neglected to issue an accompanying photograph of the man.
That may be because the group only recently added him to its most wanted list. As of Wednesday, Interpol’s website only states the defamed Ghosn is “Wanted by Japan” and lists the financial charges he’s on the hook for in Asia. The filing also lists his age, gender, nationality, and spoken languages — all par for the course. But you’d think they’d have been able to snag a photo of him from somewhere.
Despite the Red Notice going into effect, Ghosn’s status as a Lebanese citizen will likely keep him from getting scooped up in Beirut and shipped back to Japan. That’s presuming he stays put in Lebanon or another nation that wouldn’t bother with extradition.
Bloomberg, which first reported the notice, said Interpol is always careful to stress the document is not the same as an official arrest warrant — though it did not offer comment about Mr. Ghosn.
[Image: Frederic Legrand/Shutterstock]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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I mean Japan isn't the United States but nor is it Syria or Iran.
In my movie version there's a high speed chase in a GT-R ,through a tunnel in early am hours.