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Matthias Müller in the courtroom: “I had nothing to do with these things”

Photo: Moritz Frankenberg/dpa

Matthias Müller, the second former VW CEO, has already testified in the investor trial surrounding the diesel scandal at the Wolfsburg car manufacturer. Like his successor Herbert Diess, Müller claims to have had nothing to do with the manipulation of the cars, which has already cost the company well over 30 billion euros. He rejected any responsibility of his own.

“The whole topic was foreign to me,” said the 70-year-old as a witness in the Braunschweig Higher Regional Court. Müller also defended his predecessor Martin Winterkorn. “He sat there like a heap of misery,” Müller said of Winterkorn. When the scandal broke in September 2015, he was “completely irritated” and demanded a quick reaction.

Müller's successor Herbert Diess followed the same strategy in mid-January. During the hours in which the court questioned him about the manipulation, Diess always pointed out that he had only just joined the giant Wolfsburg company and had not recognized the extent of the scandal. Not even when talk of a “diesel issue” came up. “I had the impression that the topic was being dealt with solidly,” said Diess. The people involved around the then company boss Winterkorn appeared to be very competent.

Müller surprised by his own promotion to VW CEO

Müller, then head of the sports car manufacturer Porsche in the VW Group, now said that he was not responsible either. He only claims to have been properly confronted with the issue after the manipulations became public. As he himself said in court, the manager surprisingly became Winterkorn's successor as CEO. He never doubted that the company adhered to legal requirements, said Müller, also with a view to his previous positions in the VW Group.

In the process under the Capital Investor Model Procedure Act, investors have been fighting for damages for years after suffering price losses amounting to billions. The scandal broke on September 18, 2015, when the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reported manipulation of diesel car emissions tests. CEO Winterkorn resigned. The plaintiff investors feel that Volkswagen informed them too late.

According to Müller, there was “great consternation” at the group board meeting on September 22nd. The following day, with his resignation, Winterkorn assumed “political responsibility,” as Müller said. In a four -eye conversation that day, he had a patch of misery. Winterkorn simply could not imagine that something like this would happen in this company, said Müller.

"If he had known about it earlier, he would have done something about it sooner," said Müller. That is his personal opinion about Winterkorn. Before the scandal, he himself was not aware of terms such as acoustic function or defeat device, which made diesel manipulation technically possible. "I'm sorry, I had nothing to do with these things," said Müller, referring to the year 2007, when he came to VW as head of product management.

In this role you have more of a bird's eye view, said Müller. "I don't think I delved into the depths of the aggregates." He wasn't concerned with these details. He always firmly assumed that everything would happen within the framework of the legal requirements, said Müller when asked about the years 2007 and 2012.

After several years of proceedings, the court currently wants to hear a total of more than 80 witnesses. After former CEO Herbert Diess and Müller, Winterkorn will be on the witness list starting next week on Wednesday.

apr/dpa