By Tim Kelly
TOKYO (Reuters) - Carlos Ghosn's "illegal" arrest has interrupted his care for chronic kidney failure, which the former Nissan Motor boss suffers from as a result of treatment for high cholesterol, his defence alleged in documents seen by Reuters on Thursday.
The documents, prepared by Ghosn's defence team after he was arrested for the fourth time by Tokyo prosecutors last week and the details of which have not been previously reported, allege his arrest was designed to halt the defence's preparation and force a confession.
Tokyo prosecutors declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.
The prosecutors re-arrested last Thursday Ghosn at his Tokyo residence where he had been staying following his release on a $9 million bail. He has since been returned to a detention centre where he previously spent more than 100 days. Prosecutors arrested him on suspicion of enriching himself at a cost of $5 million to Nissan.
Ghosn has denied all allegations against him and said he is the victim of a boardroom coup.
"This arrest is illegal," the defence said in one of the documents, dated April 5, the day after he was re-arrested.
Ghosn has high cholesterol and, as a result of treatment, suffers from chronic kidney failure and rhabdomyolysis, the defence said. Rhabdomyolysis is a syndrome where muscle fibres release their contents into the blood stream.
Interrupting his treatment for the "convenience of prosecutors' investigation" was "inhuman", the defence said in the document.
(Reporting by Tim Kelly; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
