Mitsubishi sacks Carlos Ghosn from chairman role after arrest
Mitsubishi Motors has sacked Carlos Ghosn following his arrest in Japan, with an expert predicting a wider fallout from financial misconduct allegations against the industry luminary.
Mitsubishi is the third member of an alliance with Renault and Nissan, the latter of which ousted Ghosn as chairman after he was arrested over allegations of financial misconduct.
Mitsubishi's board voted unanimously this morning to follow Nissan's example and ditch the chairman, who has denied the allegations.
In a statement Mitsubishi said of Ghosn: "He has lost the confidence of Nissan; and that it is considered difficult for Mr Ghosn to continue conducting his activities as the representative director and chairman of the board."
Chief executive Osamu Masuko will step in as temporary chairman, Mitsubishi said.
Ghosn yesterday denied charges that he under-reported his financial remuneration.
Japanese authorities arrested him alongside fellow Nissan board member Greg Kelly last week, accusing them of conspiring to under-report Ghosn's earnings of 10bn yen (£69m).
While Nissan and Mitsubishi have voted to remove Ghosn, French car manufacturer Renault is sticking by its boss.
However, France's finance minister has called on Renault to expel the industry veteran. The French government has a 15 per cent stake in the company.
Ghosn is currently being detained in Tokyo after police secured an extension of custody last week.
Christian Stadler, professor of strategic management at Warwick Business School, warned that other Nissan executives may follow Ghosn out of the door, suggested knowledge of the alleged cover-up could have been more widespread.
"It will be interesting to see whether any Nissan executives are forced to resign as well. It seems implausible that they did not know about his incredibly lucrative financial arrangements," Stadler said.
"The executives probably know this could jeopardise their own positions. Therefore I am inclined to think it was not them who exposed Mr Ghosn, despite speculation that the leak was an attempt to get rid of him."