The first charge in Germany in the VW emissions scandal is former CEO Winterkorn

On Monday, German prosecutors filed an indictment against former Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn for involvement in the fraud that led to the scandal over diesel emissions that rocked the company. in 2015. Four other leaders have also been charged today, but their names have not been revealed. .

In 2015, US officials accused the VW group of installing illegal software on Audis, Volkswagen and Porsche diesel engines. The software would essentially kill the emissions-reducing systems of cars in real-world driving to improve performance, but under lab conditions, cars would easily pbad emissions tests. Later, it was discovered that VW Group diesel engines were using the same mechanism to overturn vehicle emissions standards of the European Union. Winterkorn and other members of VW Group management stated that they had no knowledge of this software and imputed its presence to "rogue engineers".

Winterkorn resigned from his post shortly after the publication of the VW group cheat.

The United States indicted Winterkorn and other VW Group officers in May 2018, but Germany did not undertake to extradite the accused. According to the New York Times, the Winterkorn indictment in Germany is the country's first indictment indictment related to the emissions scandal. Former Audi leader Rupert Stadler was arrested in Germany last year, but he was quickly released and has not been charged with a crime since that time.

In the United States, several leaders of the VW group have been indicted, but so far only two men have been tried. These are Oliver Schmidt, Volkswagen's chief compliance officer for emissions in the US, and James Liang, head of Volkswagen's diesel competence in California. Schmidt was arrested while he was on vacation in Miami then sentenced to seven years in prison, while Liang was sentenced to 40 months in prison and two years on parole.

Since 2015, the VW Group has settled several civil suits that have cost the company billions of dollars in vehicle purchases, fines and compensation payments to customers.

According to the New York Times, the German prosecutor linked Winterkorn and other unnamed officials to information about the diesel scandal in 2006, when Audi engineers began modifying the emission control system of a diesel vehicle. .

"Monday's indictment includes charges of breach of trust, tax evasion and false certification, either directly or by helping to commit such crimes," writes the Times. "If he is found guilty, Mr. Winterkorn could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison." The prosecutor may also force a convicted offender to repay the premiums received while the fraud was ongoing.