Helping Carlos Ghosn escape trial in Japan was a mistake, one that they deeply regret, said the Americans who helped the former Nissan Motor Co. chairman flee the nation to safety in Lebanon.
"I helped Carlos Ghosn escape Japan while he was on bail,” Michael Taylor said on Tuesday, his voice quavering. It was the first time he spoke at length in court. "I deeply regret my actions and sincerely apologize for causing difficulties for the judicial process and for the Japanese people.”
At a hearing two weeks ago, Michael and his son Peter agreed with assertions by prosecutors that they helped Ghosn escape the country at the end of 2019. They were extradited to Japan from the U.S. earlier this year, and face a maximum of three years in prison on charges of harboring or enabling the escape of a criminal.