Volkswagen's ex-CEO charged in US for diesel cheating
Former Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn was charged in federal court for allegedly conspiring with other executives to cheat on diesel emissions tests.
The charges, filed in March, were unsealed Thursday in U.S. District Court, the same day as Volkswagen’s annual meeting in Germany.
“The indictment unsealed today alleges that Volkswagen’s scheme to cheat its legal requirements went all the way to the top of the company,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement.
Volkswagen, the world’s largest car manufacturer, acknowledged in 2015 that it equipped more than 11 million diesel vehicles with software that allowed them to emit excess pollution and cheat on emissions tests. Winterkorn resigned shortly after the scandal became public.
Federal prosecutors charged Winterkorn with wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and violating the Clean Air Act. The indictment claims that Winterkorn became aware of the company’s diesel cheating as early as May 2014, but he agreed with other executives to “continue to perpetrate the fraud and deceive U.S. regulators.”
Five other executives were charged in 2016. The executives, including Winterkorn, are reportedly in Germany, where they are protected from extradition to the U.S. An Italian citizen who previously worked for Audi, a division of Volkswagen, is also in Germany. Two people have pleaded guilty in the case.