Carlos Ghosn on January 8, 2020. - AFP

French automaker Renault announced Monday that it is a civil party as part of the legal investigation in France for the misuse of social goods targeting its ex-boss Carlos Ghosn, which was passed on Thursday to an investigating judge.

Renault civil party

"The company Renault SAS has joined as a civil party in order to assert its rights" and "reserves (...) the possibility of requesting damages depending on the outcome of the investigations under way," said the group in a press release.

Judicial information, entrusted to several investigating judges from the economic and financial pole of the court of Nanterre in the Paris region, was notably opened "for abuse of corporate assets, aggravated breach of trust, forgery and use, aggravated money laundering social property (...) "for acts committed between 2009 and 2020, announced on Thursday the prosecution. Justice suspects a first party in Versailles, organized on March 9, 2014, to have taken place in honor of the 60 years of the deposed boss and not to celebrate the fifteen years of the Renault-Nissan alliance.

The images of this sumptuous evening at 530,000 euros with musicians, extras in period costume and fireworks, had caused controversy when they were revealed by the website of L'Obs.

Many loved ones at the party

According to an internal audit commissioned by Renault, 94 of the 154 guests at this banquet supervised by chef Alain Ducasse were close to the businessman (children, sisters, cousins, friends ...), mainly of origin Lebanese. During his press conference on January 8 in Beirut, Carlos Ghosn maintained that it was an evening for strictly professional purposes, despite the presence of many relatives and the absence of Nissan executives.

The other evening in the sights of justice is the rental of the Grand Trianon, in the park of the castle, for the organization in October 2016 of her marriage to Carole Ghosn, a service valued at 50,000 euros.

Another judicial investigation is underway, in Paris, for acts of "abuse of corporate assets" and "passive corruption". It relates to contracts signed by RNBV, the Dutch 50-50 subsidiary between Nissan and Renault supposed to embody the alliance, when Carlos Ghosn was the CEO. The candidate for mayor of Paris Rachida Dati and the criminologist Alain Bauer have received around one million euros each for advisory missions of which no trace has been found.

Carlos Ghosn fled to Lebanon in late December, when he was released on bail and was preparing for his trial in Japan where he was arrested in November 2018.

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  • Economy
  • Renault
  • Justice
  • Trial
  • Japan
  • Carlos Ghosn
  • Lebanon