Suspicious amounts, for "several million euros", have been paid to the company that distributes the vehicles of the Renault group in Oman, settled by the presidency of the French manufacturer under Carlos Ghosn.
Renault has reported to justice several million euros of suspicious payments settled by the presidency of the French under Carlos Ghosn, his former boss charged in Japan for breach of trust, said Monday a source familiar with the matter to AFP.
Suspicious marketing expenses in Oman . According to this source, this report was made Friday at the Nanterre public prosecutor's office (Hauts-de-Seine), which had already been seized and opened an investigation into the financing of the wedding of Carlos Ghosn at the Palace of Versailles in October 2016. The Suspicious amounts, for "several million euros", were paid to the company that distributes Renault group vehicles in Oman. They were revealed by the internal investigation launched by the manufacturer after the arrest of his former CEO late last year in Japan.
Auditors in charge of scrutinizing the accounts were surprised to see marketing expenses in Oman allocated to the cost center of the group's presidency in Paris, while these expenses are normally charged to the budget of the regions concerned. Similar financial flows had already been detected at Nissan, Renault's Japanese partner, of which Ghosn was chairman. They are believed to have been used for personal expenses unrelated to the business activity.
Released on March 6 on bail after several months in jail, Carlos Ghosn, who has no right to leave Japan, was charged in this country for a reduction of part of his income for a total of 9.23 billion yen (74 million euros) between 2010 and 2018, in Nissan reports handed over to the stock market authorities. He has also been charged with various breaches of trust.
A board of directors expected Wednesday. In France, the former boss, stripped of all his functions at Renault and Nissan, is suspected of having obtained the rental of the Palace of Versailles and Grand Trianon for the organization of his marriage, a service valued at 50,000 euros, in counterpart of a sponsorship agreement signed between the public establishment and the diamond mark.
The investigation, entrusted to the Central Office of fight against corruption and financial and fiscal offenses (Oclciff), follows a report of Renault to justice in early February. A board of directors of the manufacturer is expected Wednesday to prepare the next general meeting of shareholders. In particular, the remuneration of Carlos Ghosn for 2018 should be discussed as well as the renewal of directors who have come to the end of their mandate. The meeting will also be an opportunity to review the results of the internal investigation.