Oliver Schmidt, really? That name could be German as easily as your American theory.

Yeah, I agree we don't know his pedigree. My point was that he was not a lone wolf. I think there's a near zero chance that his boss was unaware.

 

Yeah, I agree we don't know his pedigree. My point was that he was not a lone wolf. I think there's a near zero chance that his boss was unaware.

I video was attached to an earlier post showing a US Congressmen and retired engineer at a congressional hearing clearly demonstrated, thorough his line of questioning, that a lone wolf didn't exist in this fiasco. I didn't realize you were still belaboring that point. My apologies that you were not up to speed with the thread.

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/bertels...perils-higher-ups-at-volkswagen/#3e222c9a3c4e

The FBI didn’t catch that meeting, but it found evidence of another one, a year later.

“On or about July 27, 2015, SCHMIDT and other VW employees presented to VW’s executive management in Wolfsburg, Germany, regarding the existence, purpose and characteristics of the defeat device,” the FBI claims, continuing that “in the presentation, VW employees assured VW executive management that U.S. regulators were not aware of the defeat device. Rather that advocate for disclosure of the defeat device to U.S. regulators, VW executive management authorized its continued concealment.” The same executive management claimed later not having heard anything of a defeat device until the scandal broke in September 2015

The plan to keep the defeat device concealed was duly followed, until a month later, “Volkswagen stunned U.S. regulators with a confession,” as Reuters wrote. According to Reuters, it was at the sidelines of a green car conference on August 21, 2015 when VW employees admitted to EPA and CARB that “the automaker hacked its own cars to deceive U.S. regulators,” as Reuters put it. The FBI says the admission came two days earlier, on August 19, 2015, in a meeting at CARB’s offices in El Monte, CA. “In direct contravention of instructions from his management,” a Volkswagen engineer fessed up at the meeting, the Feds claim.

That engineer is one of two “cooperating witnesses” the FBI found in VW’s engine development department. Both have, says the FBI, “agreed to cooperate with the government’s investigation in exchange for an agreement that the government will not prosecute [them] in the United States.” Also, the government has the cooperation of VW engineer James Liang, who cut a plea deal last September.

 

"U.S. Case Against Arrested Dieselgate Manager Is Threat To VW Higher-Ups"

Looks like Forbes is belaboring the point. They must not be up to speed with this thread.

 

WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors announced criminal charges on Wednesday against six Volkswagen executives for their roles in the company’s emissions-cheating scandal, a substantial turn by a departing administration that is trying to remake its image of being soft on corporate crime.

The six executives include a former head of development of the Volkswagen brand and the head of engine development. One of those charged on Wednesday, Oliver Schmidt, was arrested in Florida last week; the other five are believed to be in Germany.

Volkswagen also formally pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and to violate the Clean Air Act, customs violations and obstruction of justice. Many of the 600,000 cars in the United States equipped with emissions-cheating software were imported from Germany or Mexico.

The automaker is set to pay $4.3 billion in criminal and civil penalties in connection with the federal investigation, bringing the total cost of the deception to Volkswagen in the United States, including settlements of suits by car owners, to $20 billion — one of the costliest corporate scandals in history.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/11/...column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/11/...column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news

What a sad ending to an otherwise successful engineering career for those guys

 

What a sad ending to an otherwise successful engineering career for those guys

Self inflicted shot to the head.

 

What a sad ending to an otherwise successful engineering career for those guys

Maybe they can get a job with the incoming Trump EPA?

 

Maybe they can get a job with the incoming Trump EPA?

I wouldn't be surprised if they did...

 

Maybe they can get a job with the incoming Trump EPA?

That's not the worst idea.

 

Maybe they can get a job with the incoming Trump EPA?

I can live with that.

They do obviously know how the system works and what's wrong with it and just like the newest appointed head of the EPA have solid reason to not trust anything the organization says or does.

That's a pretty good resume for a watchdog by my definition.

 

Matthias Müller is the current CEO that took over when Winterkorn resigned just before the scandal broke. Before Winterkorn was VW Founder's grandson, CEO, Ferdinand Piech. Late last week, Piech came out of the woodwork to claim the VW Board knew about the cheat devices. He, his siblings and their decendents still own 52% of the VW group shares so he is kind of kicking himself by admitting this. Also, the currnet board of directors is threatening to file a criminal complaint of "false testimony".

http://www.industryweek.com/node/559161

 

Reading your link, something pop out at me, "Volkswagen rebuffed Piech’s accusations late on Wednesday, stating that the former chairman already made those claims in an independent investigation last year, but that they had at the time been “classified as implausible” by examiners at U.S. law firm Jones Day."

Jones Day is/has also helped our supreme leader. " The Jones Day team representing the Donald is led by another Donald — Donald F. McGahn, a leading election lawyer and controversial former chairman of the Federal Election Commission (FEC). When Donald Trump delivered his New Hampshire victory speech, a grinning Don McGahn stood right next to Trump, closer to the candidate than Trump’s wife Melania or daughter Ivanka". From, http://abovethelaw.com/2016/03/jones-day-helping-donald-trump-to-make-america-great-again/

“I’ve always thought of McGahn’s appointment as an FEC commissioner as analogous to appointing an anarchist to be chief of police,” said Paul S. Ryan, vice president at Common Cause. “He’s largely responsible for destroying the FEC as a functioning law enforcement agency, and seemingly takes great pride in this fact. McGahn has demonstrated a much stronger interest in expanding the money-in-politics swamp than draining it.” From, https://theintercept.com/2016/12/04...itect-of-americas-corrupt-big-money-politics/

Seems like all things crooked have only a few degrees of separation.

 

https://cleantechnica.com/2017/03/1...obstruction-justice-falsification-statements/

Volkswagen has plead guilty in US courts to charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, obstruction of justice, and the entry of goods by false statement. The guilty plea was accepted by US District Judge Sean Cox, who noted when commenting on sentencing: “This is a very, very, very serious crime. It is incumbent on me to make a considered decision.”
...
Commenting on the company’s fraud scheme, an assistant US attorney by the name of John Neal noted that it “was a well thought-out, planned offense that went to the top of the organization.”

A statement on the matter from Volkswagen read: “Volkswagen deeply regrets the behavior that gave rise to the diesel crisis. The agreements that we have reached with the US government reflect our determination to address misconduct that went against all of the values Volkswagen holds so dear. Volkswagen today is not the same company it was 18 months ago.”

Correct, it's Volkswagen minus a lot of wasted time and money.

 

 

What color VW do you want, we have all the colors...
- Black
- White
- Red
- Silver
- and the occasional (rare) blue-silver.

What a deep color pallet!

 

Maybe there is hope for those cars yet, at least in the US. All the supreme leader needs is a pen and an EO. He is an EPA anti regulation guy after all.

 

I guess mine's in there someplace. I miss that little Golf. Especially the great mileage. Very fitting to use the derelict silver dome as this boneyard.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2...skoda-seat-emissions-fix-left-car-undriveable

Mysterious rattles, poor fuel consumption, difficulties in starting, low power, weak acceleration. It has emerged that many drivers who have been through the dealer “upgrade” following the Volkswagen scandal are complaining that their once-trusty vehicles are a shadow of their former selves.

So far almost 500,000 of the 1.2m affected VW, Audi, Seat and Skoda diesel cars have been returned as part of the official dealer recall. Most require a simple software upgrade, but some – those with the 1.6 litre diesel engine – have required major work.

With growing numbers of returnees complaining their cars have since suffered serious problems, others are questioning whether they want to take the risk and have the work done too.

 

Maybe there is hope for those cars yet, at least in the US. All the supreme leader needs is a pen and an EO. He is an EPA anti regulation guy after all.

Lame!

Lets have a giant demolition derby with the cars at the dome.