The Blue Hat Was Part of a Disguise. It Didn't Work

Carlos Ghosn's lawyer apologized for what he says was his idea
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 8, 2019 7:31 AM CST
The Blue Hat Was Part of a Disguise. It Didn't Work
In this March 6, 2019, photo, former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn, walks out with security guards from Tokyo Detention Center in Tokyo, after posting 1 billion yen ($8.9 million) in bail once an appeal by prosecutors against his release was rejected.   (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)

Former Nissan chair Carlos Ghosn was released on a staggering bail on Wednesday, and he didn't walk out of the Tokyo Detention Center looking exactly like Carlos Ghosn. He was disguised as a construction worker, per the AP, only the disguise didn't work, and now one of his attorneys is apologizing over it. The Guardian reports Takashi Takano said it was his idea for Ghosn to walk out wearing overalls, a blue cap, and a surgical mask and enter a van topped with a ladder—which was trailed by the media. Bloomberg does suggest the get-up was at least initially successful, with many assuming he was a workman ending his shift. But some media outlets, who may have gotten a tip, knew to follow the van.

The New York Times reports it took only minutes for Ghosn to be recognized, and swift analysis then began as to why a man who has maintained his innocence would don a disguise. Takano acknowledged the disguise was "amateurish" and said his "immature plan has tarnished the reputation that he has devoted his whole life to building. I feel sorry about that." Takano said he was trying to prevent Ghosn's current address from leaking, and that part has apparently been successful: The location of his home remains unknown. Bloomberg has more on the "colorful" Takano, a 62-year-old it describes as one of the "country’s great criminal-trial lawyers," here. (More Carlos Ghosn stories.)

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