The two Americans who helped former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn escape Japan have been sentenced to prison terms in Tokyo.
Sixty-year-old Michael Taylor, a former US Army Special Forces member, was sentenced to two years in prison.
His 28-year-old son Peter has been jailed for a year and eight months.
Patrick Welter
Correspondent for business and politics in Japan, based in Tokyo.
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The defendants helped Ghosn, who was charged with serious crimes, to flee abroad, said the presiding judge.
Even after a year and a half there is no prospect that the proceedings against Ghosn could be held.
The two Americans pleaded guilty in court in June and apologized for the act.
Prosecutors had asked for two years and ten months' imprisonment for the father and two years and six months for the son.
She saw a grave guilt on the part of the defendants for insulting and degrading the Japanese judicial system.
According to the prosecution, the escape workers received $ 1.3 billion for the escape and another $ 500,000 for legal fees.
The Taylors were arrested by the United States in May 2020 and extradited to Japan in March of this year for trial.
A third person who is said to be involved in the escape has not yet been caught.
The indictment described the manager's escape in detail.
Ghosn, who had been released on bail in Tokyo and was not allowed to leave the country, then met with the two Americans in a hotel in Tokyo on December 29, 2019.
The Taylors then helped escape via Kansai International Airport near Osaka.
Ghosn was smuggled through the security checkpoints there in a box that is usually used for music equipment and brought to Turkey by private jet. There he changed to a plane to Lebanon. In addition to French and Brazilian citizenship, the former car manager is also a citizen of Lebanon, which has no extradition agreement with Japan.
Ghosn is charged in Japan for failing to disclose income equivalent to about $ 85 million in Nissan financial reports. The car manager is said to have enriched himself at the expense of Nissan. Ghosn had saved Nissan from ruin two decades earlier on behalf of Renault and is considered the architect of the alliance between Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors, which he led. He denies guilt and speaks of a plot by Nissan, with the approval of representatives of the Japanese government, because Japan wanted to prevent a merger of Nissan and Renault.
In Tokyo, the American Greg Kelly is on trial for allegedly helping Ghosn to cover up his income. Kelly served on Nissan's board of directors and denies any guilt. Nissan is also indicted for accepting the allegation that Ghosn's income was not fully disclosed.