The Hardest Fall

IT TOOK CARLOS GHOSN 20 YEARS TO REACH THE APEX OF GLOBAL BUSINESS—AND JUST A FEW MONTHS TO LOSE EVERYTHING

- Matthew Campbell, Kae Inoue, And Ania Nussbaum

AFTER TWO DECADES SPENT LOGGING MORE AIR MILES than virtually any other corporate leader, these days Carlos Ghosn rarely leaves a small slice of central Tokyo. The longtime head of Nissan Motor Co. and Renault SA lives alone in a modest house near the ex-pat hub of Roppongi, getting around by taxi and on foot. Although he still keeps a detailed calendar, his days have never been less full, leaving plenty of time for strolls and bike rides through the city’s winding streets.

Ghosn’s routine might seem lonely, but he’s rarely alone. Unmarked sedans tail him wherever he goes, close enough to make their presence obvious. If he enters a park or a restaurant, men in dark clothes get out of the cars and follow him on foot. A video camera is trained on his front door, allowing the Tokyo prosecutor’s office to keep tabs on who comes to see him. At the end of each month, he’s required to provide a list of everyone he’s met with, whether in a restaurant, at home, or at his lawyer’s office.

Ghosn makes the short trip to see his legal team a few times a week to consult with them and respond to emails. According to the terms of his release from jail earlier this year, he isn’t allowed to use a computer anywhere else, and he can carry only a flip phone. Nor has he been permitted to spend more than one night away from his house without a judge’s permission or, apart from a single one-hour videoconference in November, to see or communicate with his wife, Carole.