German prosecutors charge 15 Volkswagen executives involved in "diesel gate"

According to foreign media reports, on April 24, a German prosecutor revealed that German prosecutors had filed charges against 15 Volkswagen executives and a supplier in connection with the diesel emissions scandal.

Brunswick prosecution representative Klaus Ziehe said the suspects were charged with aiding and abetting fraud, tax evasion, indirect false certification and illegal marketing. Ziehe said the executives were accused of listing vehicles without official approval, which meant their actions were illegal and the advertisements were misleading. The indictment is now 1554 pages long, but prosecutors have not released the names of the indicted executives.

A Volkswagen spokesman said the criminal investigation was dropped in 2018 after the company paid the fine, adding that the company was not involved in the charges against individual suspects. "against this background, we do not comment on other allegations that have come to light."

The 2015 scandal involved more than 9 million Volkswagen, Audi, Seattle and Skoda brands sold to consumers with so-called cheating devices that could help circumvent environmental testing of diesel engines.

Earlier, Gleiss Lutz, Germany's largest law firm, conducted an extensive review of the liability claim of Volkswagen Diesel Gate and concluded that Winterkorn and Steed had committed dereliction of duty. Last month, Volkswagen said it would claim compensation from two former executives over the diesel emissions scandal in an attempt to distance itself from the company's biggest crisis. The trial of Winterkorn and other managers was postponed until September because of the epidemic.