Two American nationals who helped Carlos Ghosn escape Japan in 2019 were sentenced to prison on Monday.
A Tokyo court sentenced former U.S. Green Beret Michael Taylor to two years and his son Peter to one year and eight months in prison for helping Ghosn escape the Japanese judiciary.
“This case enabled Ghosn, a defendant of serious crime, to escape overseas,” Hideo Nirei, the chief judge, said while delivering the judgement.
“One year and a half has passed, but there is no prospect of the trial being held,” Nirei added. Ghosn has remained in Lebanon, which has no extradition treaty with Japan, since the infamous escape.
The Taylors, who were extradited from the U.S. earlier this year, were accused of orchestrating the escape operation in exchange for $1.3 million.
Last month, they pleaded guilty and apologized to judges and prosecutors for their role in the former executive’s intricate escape, which U.S. prosecutors have described as “one of the most brazen and well-orchestrated escape acts in recent history.”
Japanese prosecutors later said that they were seeking two years and 10 months for Michael Taylor, and two years and six months for Peter Taylor.
In a recent interview, Ghosn revealed new details about his escape, including how he felt while being smuggled inside a music equipment box.
