Volkswagen crisis: chief executive Martin Winterkorn resigns

And here’s our latest story on the VW scandal and Winterkorn’s decision to do the honourable thing:

Volkswagen has announced the resignation of its chief executive, Martin Winterkorn, and said the fallout from the diesel emissions test scandal would result in further executive scalps and a likely criminal investigation in Germany.

Winterkorn said on Wednesday he took full responsibility for the scandal, in which the company admitted that 11m cars were installed with a defeat device that reduced emissions under test conditions only, but he denied personal wrongdoing.

The company’s stock market value has fallen dramatically since the admission this week. As he resigned, Winterkorn described the situation facing the carmaker as a “grave crisis”.

Volkswagen faces up to £12bn in fines and is the subject of multiple investigations after the US Environmental Protection Agency accused it of manipulating tests on 18 September. Its executive committee said on Wednesday that it had voluntarily submitted a complaint to the state prosecutors’ office in Brunswick.

“In the view of the executive committee, criminal proceedings may be relevant due to the irregularities,” it said.

- theguardian.com -