A Japanese court approved a bail request Tuesday for Nissan Motor Co. executive Greg Kelly, who was detained and charged with underreporting the income of his boss, former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn.
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Tokyo District Court said the American Kelly will be released on 70 million yen ($635,600) bail. His release could come before the end of the day, after 37 days in custody.
Kelly and Ghosn have been detained in Tokyo since their Nov. 19 arrest. They are charged with underreporting Ghosn’s pay by about 5 billion yen ($44 million) in 2011-2015.
Kelly’s Japanese lawyer sought bail after the court dismissed prosecutors’ request for more detention for the two to investigate their second allegation of underreporting Ghosn’s 4-billion-yen ($36 million) pay.
Charges for an underreporting allegation in more recent years are pending, and no trial date has been set.
Ghosn would be detained until Jan. 1 or longer since he also faces breach of trust allegations.
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Prosecutors say Ghosn and Kelly are flight risks. After release, Kelly would have to follow the rules set by the court, including his residence, travel and other conditions, prosecutors have said.
The arrests of an industry icon and his right-hand man have triggered international attention and raised concerns about the Japanese practice of extended detentions.
Nissan has removed Kelly as representative director and Ghosn as chairman, but they are still the company’s board members. The board of Renault SA, the French ally of Nissan, has retained him while naming an interim chair, while Mitsubishi took a measure similar to Nissan.
Kelly, 62, joined Nissan North American in 1988 and worked in legal counsel and human resources at the company, and has been a member of the automaker’s board since 2012.
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Follow Mari Yamaguchi on Twitter at https://www.twiter.com/mariyamaguchi
