What happened in September was the first and, so far, the biggest blow to Europe’s largest vehicle manufacturer, but several other issues have arisen since.
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German prosecutors said Tuesday they have widened their investigation of Volkswagen to include suspicion of tax evasion after revelations that some of its cars were emitting more carbon dioxide than officially reported.
Chief executive Matthias Mueller told company managers that all technical details on how to fix cars fitted with emissions rigging software in Europe would be provided to Germany’s Federal Motor Transport Authority by the end of November, and that most would not require major work. By providing lower than real figures, Volkswagen has basically cut off a portion of the taxes the German government was entitled to. The investigation is looking into suspected tax evasion that could amount to millions of euros, German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung and German broadcasters Norddeutscher Rundfunk and Westdeutscher Rundfunk said in a joint report, via Reuters.
However, the understatement of Carbon dioxide output involved only about 800,000 diesels and gasoline vehicles whose buyers got undeserved tax incentives.
The damage caused by the tax evasion is “not small”, he said.
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And not just eyes. The criminal inquiry from Seel, still considered preliminary, is separate from an internal investigation into who was responsible for the installation of the emission cheating software, according to the NY Times Monday. We’ll keep you posted as the situation develops.
