Noyon Ahmed: How VW tried to cover up the emissions scanda

It was an "appalling" fraud that went to the very top of the company. That is the striking allegation made by US prosecutors looking into the emissions-cheating scandal at the Volkswagen Group.

The indictment unsealed on Thursday claims that former CEO Martin Winterkorn was not only fully briefed about what his engineers were up to, he also authorised a continuing cover-up.
These allegations have yet to be tested in a court of law. But if true, they paint a picture of extraordinary executive wrongdoing at one of the titans of German industry.
Dr Winterkorn himself is unlikely ever to face trial in the US. But he remains under investigation in Germany on suspicion of deceiving investors.

Far-reaching scandal

The Volkswagen scandal erupted in September 2015, when the company admitted that nearly 600,000 cars sold in the US were fitted with "defeat devices" designed to circumvent emissions tests.

Image copyright Getty Images

Image caption VW admitted it created "defeat devices" to fool diesel emissions tests

Shortly afterwards the then head of its US operations, Michael Horn, told a congressional committee that the deception was the work of "a couple of software engineers".
We know that was far from the truth. Volkswagen has already admitted as much in an agreed "statement of facts" published last year as part of a settlement with the US Department of Justice.
That document set out how Volkswagen engineers struggled to make a diesel engine which would both perform well and be capable of meeting stringent US emissions standards.
It explained how instead they designed a system to switch on emissions controls when the cars were being tested, and turn them off during normal driving.