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'Dieselgate' Trial Begins

1440 Daily Digest
(Photo by Volkswagen AG via Wikimedia)

Former Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn's criminal trial for his role in the so-called "dieselgate" scandal began yesterday, nine years after the German automotive giant was accused of rigging emissions tests. Winterkorn, 77, faces charges of fraud, market manipulation, and perjury. If found guilty, he could face up to 10 years in prison. He has denied all charges.


In September 2015, the US Environmental Protection Agency accused Volkswagen of installing illegal software, dubbed “defeat devices," in diesel cars to manipulate emissions tests to pass environmental standards. The device could switch off a car's emissions control system while driving on the road and reactivate it during emissions testing on a dynamometer. When shut off, the defeat devices allowed nitrogen oxide emissions up to 40 times higher than the legal limit.


Roughly 11 million vehicles worldwide were equipped with the software and the scandal cost Volkswagen over $38B in fines and compensation.

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