TOKYO -- Carlos Ghosn lost his last remaining board position at an automaker, as Mitsubishi Motors severed ties with the executive accused of financial misconduct.
The smallest member of the embattled three-way alliance with Nissan and Renault dismissed Ghosn, 65, as its chairman after his arrest in November on charges of financial crimes, which he has denied. Osamu Masuko, Mitsubishi Motors' CEO, stepped in to take over as chairman.
Ghosn's term was not up for renewal by Mitsubishi Motors' shareholders, cutting his formal connection to the world's biggest auto alliance, which he built and led over the past two decades.
Mitsubishi Motors joined the three-way partnership in 2016 when Nissan bought a 34 percent stake in its smaller rival for about $2.3 billion. Mitsubishi Motors had reported its biggest annual loss in more than a decade after disclosing that it improperly measured and manipulated fuel economy data.
Mitsubishi Motors shareholders also approved on Friday Takao Kato's appointment to replace Masuko as CEO.
Ghosn, who spent 130 days in jail and is now free on bail, has vigorously denied accusations of transferring personal trading losses to the automaker and under-reporting his income. He is free on bail and preparing for a trial that will probably begin next year. Ghosn's second pre-trial hearing takes place on Monday.
