A bus believed to be carrying former US special forces member Michael Taylor and his son Peter, who allegedly staged the operation to help fly former Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn out of Japan in 2019, arrives at the Tokyo district court in Tokyo on June 14, 2021. (PHOTO / AFP)

The American father-son duo charged with helping former Nissan Motor Co Chairman Carlos Ghosn flee trial in Japan a year and a half ago pleaded guilty in a Tokyo court Monday.

Appearing for the first time since they were extradited to Japan from the US earlier this year, Michael Taylor, 60, and Peter Taylor, 28, listened as the prosecutor read out the charges. Asked by the judge whether there was anything wrong with the charges, Michael replied “No, your Honor” while Peter said “No, ma’am.”

The Taylors were brought to Japan in March to face charges related to their involvement in Ghosn’s escape in late 2019 from Japan, where he was facing charges of financial misconduct

ALSO READ: Japan court extends Carlos Ghosn's detention until April 22

The duo, dressed similarly in dark jacket and pants, white shirt with no tie and plastic slippers, arrived in handcuffs. Michael appeared frail, his hair thinning and voice raspy. His son appeared stronger and spoke with confidence. Both have spent time in solitary confinement.

The Taylors were brought to Japan in March to face charges related to their involvement in Ghosn’s escape in late 2019 from Japan, where he was facing charges of financial misconduct. After smuggling himself in a case for audio equipment and boarding a private jet, the former auto executive made his way to Beirut, where he currently resides.

The pair face a maximum of three years in prison on charges of harboring or enabling the escape of a criminal. They had already served time in the U.S. before being extradited, and it’s not clear whether that time will be factored into their sentencing in Japan. The State Department said it would inform the Japanese government of the amount of time the Taylors had served so that it could be factored into any sentence imposed, according to a letter seen by Bloomberg News.

A former Green Beret, Michael has never denied his involvement in Ghosn’s escape, even describing how he executed the operation in an interview with Vanity Fair before he was arrested. A longtime security consultant, Michael said he had been planning the operation for months, though he had maintained that his son, Peter, had no role in the escape.

READ MORE: French judges to start Carlos Ghosn questioning in Beirut

Upon entering the courtroom at the Tokyo District Court on Monday afternoon around 2 pm local time, the Taylors, represented by five lawyers, were handed earphones to listen to the translation, asked their particulars by one of the judges and then read details of their indictment by one of two prosecutors.

The prosecutor outlined how Ghosn was facing a trial for falsifying financial reports and breach of trust, and “knowing that he was supposed to face this trial and he should not hide or go abroad, knowing all that, you helped him avoid the trial by helping him escape via Turkey to Lebanon?”

The prosecutor then read from a statement that said the Taylors hid Ghosn in some luggage and then took him to a hotel in Osaka and then onto Kansai airport, still hidden. The box with Ghosn was then moved to the international airport past the premium gate, past security and placed on a jet that left Japanese territory.

Both Michael and Peter, who appeared calm throughout and briefly looked at reporters in the audience box, said there was no problem with those allegations.