PARIS, April 3 (Xinhua) -- France's second largest auto maker Renault said Wednesday it had decided to scrap former CEO and Chairman Carlos Ghosn's compensation after the group's internal inquiry pointed to his "questionable and concealed practices".
"The Board of Directors ... noted, with respect to the top-up defined benefit pension plan that the circumstances of Mr. Carlos Ghosn's resignation do not fall within either of the two cases in which the plan may be open and that he is not entitled to any pension in this respect," Renault said in a statement.
The company also recommended that shareholders block 224,000 euros (251,930 U.S. dollars) in Ghosn's variable pay for 2018, after an audit assignment conducted by Renault's Ethics and Compliance Department revealed violations by Ghosn of "the Group's ethical principles, particularly concerning relationships with third parties, management of conflicts of interest, and protection of corporate assets".
Renault has also informed the French judicial authorities of potential issues concerning payments made to one of Renault's distributors in the Middle East.
According to local media, Ghosn's defined benefit plan is worth 765,000 euros.
In November 2018, Ghosn was arrested in Japan on allegations of financial misconduct, sending the group's stocks tumbling and keeping investors on edge.
The 65-year-old business leader, charged with misreporting his corporate salary and using the company's money for his own purposes, was released from a Tokyo detention facility on bail.
Ghosn, widely recognized as the brains and brawn behind Nissan's rapid turnaround since 1999, has resolutely maintained his innocence.
Earlier on Wednesday, he pledged in a Twitter message to "tell the truth" at a news conference on April 11.
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