Carlos Ghosn: Renault probes ex-chairman’s lavish Marie Antoinette-themed wedding at Palace of Versaille
Renault investigates Carlos Ghosn’s lavish Marie Antoinette-themed wedding at Palace of Versaille
Renault has informed prosecutors about a sponsorship deal that allowed former chairman Carlos Ghosn to host his lavish wedding reception at the Palace of Versaille for free.
Mr Ghosn received a personal benefit of €50,000; the normal fee for hiring the venue, Renault said.
The French car manufacturer sponsored renovations Versailles, the vast palace complex outside Paris built in the seventeenth century for the “Sun King”, Louis XIV.
It emerged on Thursday that as part of the deal Mr Ghosn and wife were allowed to hold their Marie Antoinette-themed reception at the Grand Trianon, a chateaux on the edge of Versaille.
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Renault’s ethics committee was informed about the discovery on Wednesday, Le Figaro reported
At the 2017 event, actors in 18th-century wigs and ball gowns entertained 120 guests who were treated to a selection of colourful cakes - in homage to Marie Antoinette’s supposed reaction to hearing the news that French peasants had run out of bread.
The dining room was decorated with Saint-Louis crystal, antique silver trays, and French porcelain
“We wanted it to feel as if we were inviting guests into our home—nothing too studied,” Carole Ghosn told Town and Country magazine at the time.
The latest revelation adds to Mr Ghosn’s potential problems. He has been detained in Japan since November as authorities investigate a series of charges that underreported his income by tens of millions of pounds over a five year period.
The former head of Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi’s alliance is also said to have enjoyed the use of company-funded homes in Rio de Janeiro and Paris, among others.
Mr Ghosn denies all of the charges against him.
Renault said on Thursday that it had discovered that “Mr Ghosn was accorded a personal benefit valued at €50,000 under the terms of a sponsorship contract with the Chateau de Versailles”, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
“Renault has decided to bring these findings to the attention of the judicial authorities.”
The carmaker replaced Mr Ghosn as chairman and chief executive on 24 January, more than two months after his arrest. Renault is conducting an internal probe into its own payments to Mr Ghosn.
