A German court on Monday found four former top managers of Volkswagen guilty of fraud in the long-running case regarding the manipulation of diesel car emissions.
The court in the city of Braunschweig imposed multi-year prison sentences on two defendants. Two others received suspended prison sentences.
The case against the former managers had been ongoing since 2021. In 2015, it came to light that Volkswagen had artificially lowered the emissions of millions of diesel cars using illegal software, making the cars appear more environmentally friendly in emission tests than they actually were. That case, called Dieselgate, has cost Volkswagen tens of billions in fines and damages.
The former managers and engineers were, among other things, active in the development of engine and emission technology. Public prosecutors had already stated in April that the men were accessories to fraud and deceit. The prison sentences run up to 4.5 years, but appeals are still possible.
There is also still a case against former Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn, but it has been postponed due to his poor health. The now 78-year-old Winterkorn resigned as CEO shortly after the outbreak of the affair, which is considered the biggest industrial scandal in Germany since World War II.
In addition to fraud, he is also accused of market manipulation by intentionally informing investors too late about the financial consequences of the case. Winterkorn has denied deliberately misleading investors and also said he only discovered what was going on around the manipulation late.