Four former Volkswagen executives sentenced in Germany for Dieselgate
The scandal, which erupted a decade ago, has cost the automaker more than $33 billion.
Four former Volkswagen executives were sentenced on Monday by a German court for their role in the scandal involving the cover-up of real diesel engine emissions, known as Dieselgate case, which tarnished the carmaker's image and cost it billions of euros.
After four years of trial, the Braunschweig Regional Court has sentenced former executive Heinz-Jakob Neusser to one year and three months in prison for his role in the scandal that erupted after the discovery that vehicles were equipped with software to circumvent regulations. Another executive, Jens H., must serve four and a half years in prison for manipulating the software of more than 2 million vehicles to disguise actual emissions. Former executive Hanno J. was sentenced to two years and seven months, and Thorsten D. to one year and 10 months. All four had denied the charges.
Almost a decade after the Dieselgate scandal broke, the court has handed down the first sentences in the criminal investigation targeting senior officials at Volkswagen's flagship brand. They were accused in 2019 of having vehicles equipped with softwareof emissions manipulation in a case that initially affected nine million cars sold in Europe and the United States. During the trial, the court reduced the figure to less than four million vehicles.
The core of the accusations centered on the fact that the cars were equipped with so-called defeat devices, which resulted in two types of emissions, depending on whether the vehicles were tested in the laboratory or used on the road. Thus, on the road, in a "real-life driving" scenario, emissions of toxic nitrogen oxide were much higher than during testing, according to the opinion.
Million-dollar costs
DieselgateIt sparked global outrage and led to the departure of former Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn from the company in September 2015, just days after US authorities revealed the existence of the fraudulent software. Volkswagen itself had settled the criminal investigation in 2018 by paying €1 billion (about $1.1 billion) to German prosecutors.
The scandal has so far cost the automaker more than €33 billion, including heavy penalties that were part of a settlement with U.S. authorities. The company continues to face civil litigation in its home country, including a €9 billion class-action investor lawsuit. Dozens of allegations against other employees were either dropped or allowed to settle, and some later testified at trial, drawing criticism from the current defendants, who say they have been singled out and scapegoated.