Ousted Nissan Chairman Ghosn Faces Allegations of Gross Financial Misconduct

A day after Nissan Motor board voted unanimously to oust Chairman Carlos Ghosn from his post, serious allegations have emerged that Ghosn used $18 million of the company money to enrich himself by buying personal residences and made huge payments to a family member, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Ghosn was arrested Monday by Japanese authorities after accusations of under-reporting his income by almost $ 45 million and misusing company assets but is yet to be charged.

Ghosn had been accused of buying residences in Brazil and Beirut and siphoning off hefty sums to his older sister. Internal investigations by the company revealed that Ghosn used a subsidiary in the Netherlands to buy and renovate personal properties , including a condominium in Rio de Janeiro and a house in Beirut.

According to the report, the company investigation also found he made multiple payments to his older sister for consulting including a $60,000 commission for advising on the housing in Rio de Janeiro, but Nissan found no evidence the sister actually performed such work.

Ghosn is likely to be succeded by CEO Hiroto Saikawa, who’s reportedly working on restoring the balance of power in Nissan-Renault partnership towards the Japanese firm.

Nissan is also under pressure from Renault and the French government, which holds a stake in Renault, to justify the ouster of Ghosn. Few observers warn that Franco-Japanese auto behemoth could head for a split because of Ghosn’s ouster.