[TOKYO] Carlos Ghosn, the former business luminary who fled criminal charges in Japan, leveled a blistering attack against his former employer Nissan Motor, accusing the company of scapegoating him to block further integration with French partner Renault SA.

Nissan's characterisation of an internal investigation that it completed months ago as robust and thorough is "a gross perversion of the truth," Ghosn said in a statement released ahead of his highly anticipated first press conference on Wednesday.

The Nissan internal probe was designed to retain the Japanese automaker's independence and protect favored executives while disparaging Ghosn's allies, his defence team said in the statement.

"That investigation was never about finding the truth," the team said. "It was initiated and carried out for the specific, predetermined purpose of taking down Carlos Ghosn to prevent him from further integrating Nissan and Renault."

The salvo is an apparent response to Nissan saying Monday that it will take "appropriate legal action" against Ghosn following his decision last week to jump bail in Japan and flee to Lebanon.

Ghosn was arrested just over a year ago at Tokyo's Haneda Airport, kicking off a legal saga that saw him detained for months in solitary confinement before being released on bail, re-arrested and bailed out again.

Ghosn was under house arrest, facing trial for alleged crimes including understating his income and breach of trust charges when on Dec 31 - as Japan entered a week-long holiday - he fled to Lebanon to escape what he described as a "rigged Japanese justice system."

BLOOMBERG