VW Pleads Guilty to Criminal Misconduct, Six Employees Indicted

Volkswagen has agreed to pay $4.3 billion in criminal and civil penalties related to its diesel cheating. The U.S. government has also indicted six high-level VW employees for their roles in the conspiracy.

The automaker has pleaded guilty to three felony counts for violating U.S. laws. As part of the settlement, VW will pay penalties for importing and selling cars into the U.S. by false statement, participating in a conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and violate the Clean Air Act, and obstruction of justice for destroying documents related to the scandal.

Criminal penalties comprise $2.8 billion of the total fines, while the rest of the money will go toward civil fees.

To help prevent future violations, the U.S. government has ordered that an independent monitor oversee VW’s compliance with standards over a three-year period. U.S. regulators stressed that the investigation is not over, as it will continue to look into VW’s diesel cheating and those involved in the scandal.

“Volkswagen’s attempts to dodge emissions standards and import falsely certified vehicles into the country represent an egregious violation of our nation’s environmental, consumer protection and financial laws,” said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch in a statement today.

The six VW employees charged with wrongdoing in the diesel scandal include members of the engine development team and other areas. These include Heinz-Jakob Neusser, former VW brand head of Development and a VW brand board member; Jens Hadler, former VW head of engine development; Richard Dorenkamp, former head of VW’s engine development after-treatment department in Wolfsburg, Germany; Bernd Gottweis, former VW supervisor in charge of Quality Management and Product Safety; Oliver Schmidt, general manager responsible for the Environment and Engineering Office in Auburn Hills, Michigan; and Jurgen Peter, part of VW’s Quality Management and Product Safety Group and former VW liason to regulatory agencies.

“Volkswagen deeply regrets the behavior that gave rise to the diesel crisis,” VW Group CEO Matthias Muller said in a statement today. “Since all of this came to light, we have worked tirelessly to make things right for our affected customers and have already achieved some progress on this path.”

Since the diesel scandal broke in September 2015, VW has stopped selling all of its diesel vehicles in the U.S. and has shifted its focus toward electrified vehicles.

Source: Volkswagen, Department of Justice, Reuters

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