The trial of Greg Kelly, former Nissan executive, opened on September 15, 2020 in Tokyo. The American was arrested the same day as Carlos Ghosn in November 2018.
The international press echoed this news by underlining the extreme length of the upcoming trial with nearly 76 days of hearings, spread over months and whose verdict is not expected before the fall of 2021 or spring 2022.
Once again, the Japanese hostage justice system is being highlighted at the international level.
Greg Kelly pleads not guilty (contrary to Nissan, also a defendant in this case) and his defense team has highlighted it had, only recently, had access to part of the file through dozens of boxes of documents delivered to them, which are impossible to review before the beginning of the trial.
In the absence of the Carlos Ghosn and this trial seems absurd, however Greg Kelly is determined to stand up for himself. Regarding the accusations against him of having organized, for the benefit of Carlos Ghosn, a system of remuneration behind Nissan’s back, he declares in particular:
“I have always consulted with Nissan’s attorneys and outside counsel”
Greg Kelly – 15 september 2020
A few days later, a legal expert, in an opinion piece in Japanese newspaper Nikkei, believes that after the first hearings, the Japanese prosecutors had reached a corner with this case.
A long fight is to come.