Alleged Ghosn Accomplice Loses Bid to Reopen Extradition Case

(Bloomberg) -- The two men accused of helping Nissan Co. executive Carlos Ghosn escape prosecution in Tokyo remain on track to be extradited to Japan by U.S. authorities, after a federal judge in Boston denied a request to reopen the case.

Lawyers for one of the men, Peter Taylor, asked U.S. Magistrate Donald Cabell to re-evaluate the case after the Japanese government revealed that one piece of the evidence used to implicate him in the plot may have been based on a false premise. But then Japan reversed itself, saying it stood by the evidence after all.

On Friday, Cabell said he would have blocked the appeal by Taylor anyway.

“The remainder of the evidence in the court’s view, none of which moreover was disputed, still provides probable cause to believe that the respondent assisted in the planning, financing, and execution of Ghosn’s escape as alleged,” Cabell said.

Still, Peter Taylor and his father, Michael Taylor, are continuing to pursue other avenues to block their extradition, arguing in court that they would face torture in Japan. For weeks, the case has been in legal limbo, as U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani examines that claim.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.