It is a major step in the global scandal of dieselgate: the former CEO of the car manufacturer Audi, a subsidiary of Volkswagen, agreed, Wednesday, May 3, to plead guilty in Germany in the trial river judging his responsibilities in the case, one of the many legal consequences of the sprawling case of fraud on diesel engine emissions.

While he has so far disputed the alleged facts, Rupert Stadler will plead guilty as part of an agreement with the Munich Regional Court.

In exchange for the confession, he should receive a suspended prison sentence of up to two years and pay a fine of 1.1 million euros.

The ousted boss of Volkswagen, aged 60, is the main defendant in the first criminal trial opened in Germany to judge the global scandal of dieselgate.

Rupert Stadler's formal confession, which is expected in two weeks, is a prerequisite for validating the plea agreement.

The court is then expected to deliver its judgment in June, a judicial source told AFP.

"Fraud by omission"

Rupert Stadler had always denied any responsibility in the case of rigged engines that broke out at Volkswagen in 2015, claiming that he had been duped by his technicians.

He should have acknowledged by July 2016 at the latest that the emission values of diesel cars could be manipulated, the court was convinced. Instead of stopping the illegal scheme and informing business partners, he continued to support the sale of the rigged cars.

This would earn him a prison sentence for "fraud by omission" but suspended because of the confession, albeit belatedly. This admission of guilt makes it possible to reduce the penalty incurred, which was a maximum of ten years.

Rupert Stadler accepted the guilty plea, as did the other two defendants in the trial: a former director at Audi and Porsche, Wolfgang Hatz, and an Audi engineer, Giovanni Pamio. The prosecutor's office refuses at this stage the principle of a suspended sentence for Wolfgang Hatz.

Rupert Stadler's defence had initially discussed the amount of the proposed fine, more than one million euros, arguing that their client's income had dropped from "100 to 0", currently limited to the rental of real estate.

Several builders targeted by the courts in France

In 2015, following accusations from the US Environmental Agency (EPA), Volkswagen admitted to equipping 11 million of its diesel vehicles with software capable of making them appear less polluting in laboratory tests than on the roads.

This scandal has heavily damaged the reputation of the German car industry. The Volkswagen Group has since had to pay more than 30 billion euros in reimbursements, compensation and legal costs, including the largest in the United States.

Many legal aspects of the scandal remain to be completed. Another major criminal trial opened in September 2021, involving four former Volkswagen executives accused of fraud, is still ongoing in a court in Brunswick, not far from the automaker's historic headquarters in northern Germany.

This trial is being held for the moment without its main accused, the former CEO of the first European manufacturer at the time of the scandal, Martin Winterkorn. Exempted from hearing for medical reasons, the date of his possible appearance remains "totally open", according to a judicial source to AFP.

Another civil lawsuit is taking place in the court of Brunswick by investors seeking compensation, while the title of VW had collapsed by some 40% in the days following the outbreak of the scandal. Hearings are scheduled to resume on May 23 with the scheduled hearing of 76 witnesses.

In France, the Paris Court of Appeal confirmed in March the indictment for aggravated deception of Volkswagen. The German manufacturer had contested this procedure, considering that he could not be prosecuted a second time for facts, according to him, already sanctioned by the German justice in 2018, which had led to the payment of a fine of one billion euros.

The German is not alone here, the manufacturers Renault, Peugeot, Citroën and Fiat-Chrysler have also been indicted in mid-2021.

With Reuters and AFP

The summary of the week France 24 invites you to look back on the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news with you everywhere! Download the France 24 app