Carlos Ghosn escapes 'Japanese injustice', seeks refuge in Lebanon

Having been caught on the hop, Japanese authorities were reportedly investigating how the former executive had managed to flee the country without any of his passports.

Ghosn's lawyer Junichiro Hironaka told reporters Tuesday that his client's flight from Japan was a "complete surprise."

"We are puzzled and shocked," he said in front of TV cameras gathered outside his office in Tokyo.

One of Ghosn’s Japanese lawyers told reporters on Tuesday that his legal team were still holding all three of his passports and that he could not have used any of them to escape.

Ghosn issued a statement on Tuesday morning in which he said that he would “no longer be held hostage by a rigged Japanese justice system where guilt is presumed.”

“I have not fled justice – I have escaped injustice and political persecution,” Ghosn said in the statement, adding that he could “finally communicate freely with the media, and look forward to starting next week”.

Ghosn arrived in Beirut from Turkey on a private plane, Lebanese newspaper Al Joumhouria reported.

There is no extradition treaty between Japan and Lebanon.

Ghosn faced four charges, including hiding income and enriching himself through payments to dealerships in the Middle East.