TOKYO — Did fallen auto titan Carlos Ghosn dupe two Americans into aiding his escape in a desperate bid to evade jail in Japan before they themselves were arrested and put on trial?

That was the explanation offered by the father-son freelance security team of Michael and Peter Taylor, in emotional testimony last week before the Tokyo District Court. The duo apologized profusely to judges and prosecutors for helping Ghosn jump bail by packing him into a box and secretly flying him out of Osaka in a chartered jet. But looking back, they said, Ghosn misled them about numerous matters in the case.

Father Michael Taylor, 60, said they were led to believe Ghosn was tortured in Japan, after the former Nissan chairman's arrest in November 2018 on charges of financial misconduct.