Prosecutors have decided not to indict two former close aides to ousted Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn after they agreed to a plea bargain in relation to alleged financial misconduct, sources close to the matter said Friday.
The former aides — a foreign executive at Nissan and a former executive at the automaker's secretariat — have cooperated with investigators by providing documents relevant to allegations that Ghosn had underreported his remuneration for years.
They reached the agreement between October and November, according to the sources, in what appears to be the second such deal since Japan introduced the plea bargaining system in June last year.
They could still be examined in court as witnesses, as Ghosn's lawyers are expected to argue that their confession statements should not be admitted as evidence.
Ghosn, 65, along with Greg Kelly, 62, a former Nissan director, has been indicted for allegedly underreporting his remuneration between fiscal 2010 and 2017 as around ¥7.8 billion ($71 million) when it was actually ¥17 billion.
Ghosn has been indicted four times since his initial arrest in November. He is also suspected of transferring private investment losses to Nissan's books, among other allegations.
Ghosn has denied all the allegations against him.
