The trial of the former boss Volkswagen Martin Winterkorn is the aftermath of the famous emissions manipulation scandal. The so-called dieselgate scandal came to light in 2015.
If the Braunschweig court now finds Winterkorn guilty, the manager could face several years in prison. Penal Code The penalties range “from a fine and a short prison sentence to several years in prison,” said Benedikt Eicke, spokesman for the Braunschweig Regional Court. The trial against Winterkorn began on Tuesday, September 3.
Dieselgate. Former Volkswagen boss on trial in emissions scandal
The charges brought against the former VW boss of commercial fraud and organized crime are particularly serious. They carry a penalty of up to ten years in prison. “Ultimately, the most important issue will be the time, i.e. when Winterkorn learned of the use of the prohibited device,” the court spokesman explained.
It's about mounting in in cars software produced by the Volkswagen Group that allows the manipulation of exhaust emission measurement results.
The subject of the trial and the scope of the charges are “extremely broad,” the court spokesman added. Around 90 hearings are scheduled until September 2025.
The manager denies the allegations
Martin Winterkorn, 77, is also accused of making false statements and market manipulation. The court combined three separate charges, all of which are related to cheating software installed in diesel engines.
Winterkorn denies all allegations, his defense attorney Felix Dörr said at the beginning of the trial. The former VW boss is neither the “main accused” nor the “main person responsible” for the diesel scandal in Wolfsburg, he said. The CEO's position at the time does not justify classifying him as the main accused and responsible for the scandal in all aspects, Winterkorn's defense attorney added. He noted that the court must now prove that the important information reached the then CEO of Volkswagen.
For the defense, it is at least certain that Winterkorn “did not cheat” and “hurt no one.” He also did not deliberately conceal certain facts on the capital market or give false testimony before the Bundestag investigative committee.
(AFP, DPA/home)