Carlos Ghosn’s arrival in Lebanon amid the ongoing warrant for his arrest has been tarnished with everything from scandal to complete awe.
As he currently resides in his home with family in Beirut, the Lebanese government is reportedly citing “procedural flaw” as the reason for its lack of cooperation with Interpol requests over Carlos Ghosn.
According to a report by The Japan Times, Lebanese authorities have not accepted a formal cooperation request from Interpol in relation to Carlos Ghosn, which was filed after Ghosn fled to Beirut. The Japan Times cited its source as “a Lebanese prosecution official.”
However, the said official’s disclosure is conflicting with reports in Lebanon that local prosecutors plan to question Ghosn as early as January 7 in regard to the notice they have received from the international police organization.
The official reportedly told The Japan Times that there was a “procedural flaw” with the notice and, given that no formal request for the investigation has arrived, the prosecutors will not be able to interrogate Ghosn just yet.
Ghosn, who is infamously facing a trial for alleged financial misconduct, arrived in Lebanon on December 30, 2019, on a private jet through Turkey. He had escaped from what he claimed was a “rigged” and unjust Japanese justice system.
The request by Interpol, which instructs authorities to detain a wanted person, is currently pending for revision, according to the source.
As stated previously, Lebanon has no extradition agreement with Japan, and Ghosn entered the country legally while in possession of a French passport and a Lebanese identification card.
However, Turkish authorities have claimed that Ghosn, who holds Brazilian, French and Lebanese nationalities, entered and departed from Turkey illegally via a private aircraft with the help of suspected accomplices who have themselves also been detained.
Ghosn was arrested in 2018 by Japanese prosecutors and was released on bail in April that year, on conditions that included a ban on foreign travel.
According to The Japan Times’ source: “Lebanese prosecutors will not stop Japanese authorities from joining in their investigation of Ghosn,” and added that “Japan has not requested such cooperation nor the handover of Ghosn by Beirut.”
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