TOKYO—Former Nissan Motor Co. executive Greg Kelly said he never conspired to hide Carlos Ghosn’s pay, taking the stand in his own defense for the first time in the criminal trial involving disclosure of the former Nissan chief’s compensation.
The 64-year-old Mr. Kelly, an American, was arrested alongside Mr. Ghosn in November 2018 and subsequently charged with violating a Japanese law governing executive pay disclosure. Mr. Ghosn was also charged but escaped Japan in late 2019 on a private jet and now lives in Lebanon, which doesn’t have an extradition treaty with Japan.
Prosecutors allege that Mr. Kelly conspired with Mr. Ghosn, the former chief of Nissan and Renault SA, to pay Mr. Ghosn the equivalent of about $85 million in compensation after he retired, to avoid disclosing it to shareholders in the years when prosecutors say the amounts were decided.
Speaking in a packed courtroom Wednesday, Mr. Kelly said he looked at ways to pay Mr. Ghosn additional money because he was concerned that the Nissan head could be lured to work at a rival company. But as it became clear Nissan couldn’t simply give Mr. Ghosn more money, Mr. Kelly said he and other Nissan executives examined ways to pay Mr. Ghosn after retirement, including by retaining Mr. Ghosn as a consultant for Nissan. Mr. Kelly said he reasoned that Mr. Ghosn might not quit if he knew another payday was coming.
“I did not conspire with Mr. Ghosn or others,” Mr. Kelly said.
