Japanese authorities will indict the two American nationals accused of helping Carlos Ghosn escape Japan, in June 2021.
According to the Tokyo District Court, the trial of Michael Taylor and his son Peter will open on June 14th.
The defendants are accused of concealing the former Nissan CEO in a music box so that he could be flown out of Japan and escape prosecution over financial misconduct allegations.
According to Japanese authorities, Ghosn passed undetected in a large box through airport security in the city of Osaka before being flown to Turkey, eventually landing in Beirut in late December 2019, where he remains today.
Turkey has since sentenced two pilots and an executive to prison for their role in the escape.
Michael Taylor, a former Green Beret, is accused of hiding Ghosn in the box with the help of another man named George-Antoine Zayek, while his son Peter is accused of meeting Ghosn in Japan and helping execute the escape plan.
In March, the United States extradited the Taylors to Japan months after they were arrested in their home country over their connection to the Ghosn case.
While in U.S. custody, they fought to dodge extradition, arguing that their actions were not technically a crime in Japan, and citing fears of torture in Japanese prison.
Japan has sought the extradition of Ghosn from Lebanon as well but failed to get hold of him due to the absence of an extradition treaty with Lebanon.
Ghosn, who holds Lebanese, French, and Brazilian citizenships, has raised the question of why Japan doesn’t send investigators to question him in Lebanon, as France plans to do.
