Carlos Ghosn's appeal against his ongoing detention was rejected by the Tokyo District Court, according to a statement released by the court Wednesday. The ousted Nissan chairman's lawyers will now appeal the decision at a higher court, NHK reported.

Wednesday's decision by the judge means the auto industry icon, who is fighting charges of financial misconduct related to his time while heading Nissan Motor Co., could remain behind bars until a possible trial, which his main lawyer, Motonari Otsuru, has said may not be for another six months. Ghosn's current period of custody ends Friday, but prosecutors are likely to hand him fresh charges or request another extension as they build their case against him.

Separately, sources said Wednesday that Ghosn had planned to extend a loan of ¥3 billion ($27 million) to a Saudi businessman through the carmaker, possibly to use as collateral for his private investment contract. The plan did not materialize as Nissan felt there would be legal problems, the sources said.