Carlos Ghosn's Wife Questioned by Tokyo Prosecutors

FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn accompanied by his wife Carole Ghosn, arrives at his place of residence in Tokyo, Japan, March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn accompanied by his wife Carole Ghosn, arrives at his place of residence in Tokyo, Japan, March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo
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Carlos Ghosn's Wife Questioned by Tokyo Prosecutors

FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn accompanied by his wife Carole Ghosn, arrives at his place of residence in Tokyo, Japan, March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn accompanied by his wife Carole Ghosn, arrives at his place of residence in Tokyo, Japan, March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo

The wife of ousted Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn was questioned by prosecutors in a closed-door hearing at the Tokyo District Court on Thursday, a week after her husband was arrested for a fourth time.

Carole Ghosn returned to Japan on Wednesday - days after she left the country to seek help from the French government – and was to be questioned by authorities, a person with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

"(She) responded in a sincere manner. We believe this will lead to Mr. Ghosn's acquittal," said Ghosn's lawyer Junichiro Hironaka, according to Kyodo News.

Carole Ghosn entered the courthouse at around 2:30 p.m. local time and left about 2 1/2 hours later, Kyodo reported.

Prosecutors last week arrested the former Nissan chairman for the fourth time on suspicion he tried to enrich himself at a cost of $5 million to the automaker. The tycoon was previously arrested and charged for financial misconduct and has denied wrongdoing.

Authorities had also wanted to question Carole Ghosn on suspicion that her husband had siphoned funds through a company where she is an executive to purchase two boats, public broadcaster NHK has reported.

Carlos Ghosn, a French, Lebanese and Brazilian citizen, has said he is the victim of a boardroom coup. He is being held in the Tokyo Detention Center, where he spent 108 days after his initial arrest on Nov. 19.

Prosecutors have until April 14 to question the auto sector legend after which they can apply for a further 10-day period of custody.

The Nikkei reported that his wife arrived back in Japan at Tokyo's Haneda airport on Wednesday, quoting her as saying she wanted to tell a court that there was "absolutely nothing illegal".



Germany Lowers Gas Security Alert Level as Supply Bottlenecks Ease

German Economy and Energy Minister Katherina Reiche attends a plenary session of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany June 25, 2025. REUTERS/ Nadja Wohlleben/ File Photo
German Economy and Energy Minister Katherina Reiche attends a plenary session of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany June 25, 2025. REUTERS/ Nadja Wohlleben/ File Photo
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Germany Lowers Gas Security Alert Level as Supply Bottlenecks Ease

German Economy and Energy Minister Katherina Reiche attends a plenary session of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany June 25, 2025. REUTERS/ Nadja Wohlleben/ File Photo
German Economy and Energy Minister Katherina Reiche attends a plenary session of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany June 25, 2025. REUTERS/ Nadja Wohlleben/ File Photo

The German government has lowered the gas supply security level to early warning grade from alarm level as supply bottlenecks eased, Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said on Tuesday.

Berlin had declared the alert level in June 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and a sudden drop in gas imports from Moscow. Germany no longer imports pipeline-based gas from Russia and no Russian liquefied natural gas arrives in its LNG terminals, Reiche said, Reuters reported.

She said Germany's gas supply was secure and the conditions for the alert level according to its emergency plan no longer existed. Reiche added that given the stable situation, it was not necessary for the government to refill the country's gas storage facilities through its trading hub.

The early warning level, the first of three crisis levels, will remain in place for the government to keep a close eye on the supply situation.

"The market is still able to cope with this disruption or demand without the need for non-market-based measures," Reiche told journalists at a news conference in Berlin.

Germany's gas storage levels are around 50% below levels of previous years but storage activity has increased significantly, she said. While gas prices have stabilized at around 34 euros per megawatt hour, this is still twice as high as before the energy crisis stirred by the war in Ukraine.