[dynamite-ready]

The whole 'gaijin' side-story is hard to ignore, given all that's written in the western press about Japan, and it's attitude towards migrants. But there's surely no smoke without fire in a case like this, because it should be fairly easy to prove some degree of innocence in crimes of this nature.

It has been interesting to gain a little insight into how pernicious the Japanese judiciary can be though.

The story of the artist Megumi Igarashi is especially funny (yet also disturbingly sexist)...

Ghosn though, is far from funny. But fleeing the country is a pretty sketchy response to a criminal charge.

[DebtDeflation]

>But fleeing the country is a pretty sketchy response to a criminal charge.

He was facing a 20 year prison sentence in a country with a 99.7% conviction rate. The trial was to take place later this year. He's 65 years old. I have no idea whether he's guilty of the charges but the reality of the situation he faced was that his only two choices were flee now or likely spend the rest of his life in prison.

[SimbaOnSteroids]

Japanese conviction rates exceed 99%, he's 65 years old and facing 20 years. It's not really that surprising he fled, I have a hard time believing that any of us in a similar circumstance and with similar means wouldn't do the same. He was faced with an A | B choice. A: Stay and die in prison. B: Flee and maybe not get caught for a hot minute, eventually get caught, die in prison.