Board member Greg Kelly, along with Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn, were co-conspirators of financial misconduct, says Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa. Nissan's board voted November 22 to remove Ghosn as board chair and representative director, CNBC reports. Japanese authorities had arrested Ghosn and Kelly, with both men placed in a Tokyo-detention center.
"We have confirmed these two are the masterminds," Saikawa said November 19 as reported by Automotive News. "This is an act that cannot be tolerated."
A whistleblower report informed Nissan of the misconduct and prompted an investigation by the auto company, Nissan noted in a statement.
That investigation revealed that "Ghosn and Kelly have been reporting compensation amounts in the Tokyo Stock Exchange securities report that were less than the actual amounts, in order to reduce the disclosed amount of Ghosn's compensation," the Nissan release notes.