2000 Mitsubishi Montero Sport Ls on 2040-cars

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Carlos Ghosn, a year after arrest, still seeks trial date and access to evidence

TOKYO — A year after his arrest, Nissan ex-Chairman Carlos Ghosn remains stuck in Tokyo under stringent bail conditions and without a trial date as he seeks access to a trove of Nissan emails and other evidence to fight charges of financial misconduct. His lawyers have asked a court to grant access to 6,000 pieces of evidence collected from Nissan such as electronic communications, which they say is crucial for a fair trial, showed an Oct. 4 court filing seen by Reuters. The once-feted executive has spent 129 days in detention since his arrest shortly after his private jet touched down at a Tokyo airport on Nov. 19, 2018. He faces four charges — which he denies — including hiding income and enriching himself through payments to dealerships in the Middle East. Nissan sacked Ghosn, saying its internal investigations revealed misconduct ranging from understating his salary while he was its chief executive, and transferring $5 million of Nissan funds to an account in which he had an interest. An earlier court ruling allowed prosecutors to hand back evidence to Nissan during pretrial wrangling over witnesses and evidence similar to the U. S. discovery process. If prosecutors are "given the freedom to unilaterally delete the collected evidence and return it to relevant parties, this is equivalent to granting the investigative agencies the right to destroy evidence," showed the filing to the Tokyo District Court. The lawyers also asked the court to rescind the earlier ruling, saying some evidence could be erased by Nissan to protect confidential business information. They argued the "ruling deprives Mr. Ghosn of his right to receive a fair public trial by an impartial court," as it enabled prosecutors to view and use the evidence and withhold it from the defense. Prosecutors are not required to hand over all evidence they or the police gather during investigations unless ordered by the court, unlike in the U.S. discovery process where prosecutors and defense lawyers disclose the evidence they intend to present in court. A spokeswoman for the Tokyo prosecutors' office said the office could not comment on individual cases. A Nissan spokeswoman declined to comment. Ghosn's lawyers have also asked the court to dismiss all charges against him, accusing prosecutors of colluding with government officials and Nissan executives to oust him to block any takeover of the automaker by French alliance partner Renault SA, of which Ghosn was also chairman.

Mitsubishi Motors shareholders approve ouster of Ghosn

TOKYO — Mitsubishi Motors Corp. shareholders approved on Friday the ouster of Carlos Ghosn, who was pivotal in the Japanese automaker's three-way partnership with Nissan and Renault until he was arrested on financial misconduct charges last year. The vote took place in a two-hour general meeting of shareholders at a Tokyo hotel. Nissan Motor Co. owns 34% of Mitsubishi Motors. Osamu Masuko, who was reappointed chairman, promised to strengthen governance and transparency and monitor wrongdoing. More outsiders will check executive appointments and compensation, he said. Nissan shareholders held an extraordinary shareholders' meeting in April to oust Ghosn as chairman. He resigned from French alliance partner Renault SA. The Mitsubishi shareholders also approved the appointment of Renault's chairman Jean-Dominique Senard to replace Ghosn. Renault owns 43% of Nissan. Nissan, based in the port city of Yokohama, is holding a general shareholders' meeting next week to approve other measures, including setting up committees to strengthen governance. Nissan said late Thursday two Renault executives will be on the committees. Renault earlier said it would abstain in that vote, and the greater representation promised on the committees may gain Renault's approval. Renault said in a statement that it welcomed Nissan's decision but did not say how it planned to vote. "The agreement reached on Renault's presence in Nissan's new governance confirms the spirit of dialogue and mutual respect that exists within the alliance," it said. Some analysts suggest a deepening rift between Renault and Nissan after a planned merger between Renault and Fiat Chrysler fell through earlier this month. Nissan expressed reservations about immediately joining the merger. Masuko told shareholders the auto industry faced challenges because of the costs of advancements such as emissions standards and self-driving technology. He said the Tokyo-based automaker will pursue focus over expansion, repeatedly highlighting the company motto "small but beautiful." He also stressed the importance of auto alliances. "We want to be a profitable company even if smaller in scale," he told shareholders. One Mitsubishi Motors shareholder expressed anger over the Ghosn scandal. But most of the questions were about new models and market strategy.

Junkyard Gem: 2006 Mitsubishi Raider

When I'm scouring the rows of a big, fast-inventory-turnover vehicle boneyard for fascinating examples of automotive history, I keep strange examples of badge engineering at the top of my shopping list. Subarus with Saab emblems, Isuzus with Acura emblems, Hyundais with Mitsubishi emblems, Austins with Nash emblems, Mazdas with Mercury emblems, all the vehicles that sprang into existence because Carmaker A wanted to fill a vacant slot in the showrooms and Carmaker B proved willing to offer a vehicle that fit that slot. While I have yet to unearth a discarded Suzuki Equator pickup, I've found this truck with a far more convoluted model-name history: a 2006 Mitsubishi Raider in Phoenix. Chrysler sold rebadged Mitsubishis over here for decades, beginning with the Dodge Colt in the 1971 model year. Trucks joined the mix in the middle 1970s, with the Plymouth Arrow and then the Dodge D-50/Ram 50 pickups. The Dodge-ized Mitsubishi pickups soon faced competition from their Mitsubishi-badged twins, in the form of the Mighty Max, and then Chrysler began selling first-generation Mitsubishi Monteros with Dodge badging. That truck became the Dodge Raider, available with "Imported for Dodge" emblems in North America for the 1987 through 1989 model years. Raider owners loved their tough little SUVs every bit as much as Montero owners loved theirs, and so the Raider name continued — decades later — to have positive connotations in the world of Dodge and Mitsubishi truck owners. So, when the American outpost of the Mitsubishi Empire needed a pickup to offer in their showrooms (the Mighty Max having been axed in 1996), they turned to their friends at Chrysler and the Dodge Dakota pickup. With some new bodywork and tough-looking Raider badges, the Dodge/Mitsubishi Raider circle had been closed. Raider sales began in 2005 for the 2006 model year. Sales numbers proved disappointing, and 2009 was the last year for the Raider. This one got crashed hard, then picked over for mechanical goodies by Dakota owners. You won't find many pickups this new with manual transmissions, but this one had one. The engine is long gone, but would have been an American Motors-developed 4.7-liter V8 or 3.7-liter V6. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. With Dodge going murderously macho with their ads last decade, Mitsubishi had no choice but to follow that formula with the Raider. Related Video: