Former Nissan CEO and chairman Carlos Ghosn has been ordered to relinquish ownership of his 37-metre yacht Shachou (now Twig), according to a court ruling in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court in the British Virgin Islands.
The case was presided over by High Court Judge Gerhard Wallbank and is the first official judgement against Ghosn since his initial arrest over allegations of financial misconduct in November 2018.
The claimants, Japanese automobile manufacturer Nissan Motor Co. and its Middle East subsidiary, alleged that Ghosn had "misappropriated" $32 million from Nissan's CEO Reserve Fund, €12,199,147 of which was used to buy the Ferretti yacht.
The sum had been transferred through a network of Middle Eastern individuals and companies to Beauty Yachts, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands and previously owned by Ghosn's former lawyer, Fadi Gebran. Ghosn assumed ownership of the company following Gebran's death in 2017.
The court levelled five causes of action against Ghosn and Beauty Yachts: breach of fiduciary duty, bribery, unjust enrichment, dishonest assistance and knowing receipt.
"Beauty Yachts was used by Mr. Ghosn as a vehicle for the dishonest receipt and disbursement of monies for his own benefit, the acquisition of assets for the benefit of Mr. Ghosn [and] to conceal his participation in a wrongful scheme," read a statement from Judge Wallbank.
The ruling also concluded that Ghosn and Beauty Yachts provide $32,000,000 and $13,665,000 restitution to Nissan, respectively.
Twig was delivered in 2017 as the second unit in the Italian shipyard's Navetta 37 series. The yacht has an exterior by Zuccon International Project, while naval architecture and interiors were completed in-house. Accommodation is across five cabins, with the fore part of the main deck – complete with "wide-body" suite, office area and a walk-in wardrobe – reserved for the owner.
BOAT International will update the story as it develops.