The continuation of the Criminal proceedings against former VW Group CEO Martin Winterkorn in the diesel scandal is postponed. The criminal court has been informed that the 77-year-old after an accident in hospital The Braunschweig Regional Court said that the hearing dates for this Wednesday and Thursday were cancelled.
The court did not want to disclose further details about the accident in the home environment and Winterkorn’s current state of health. It is therefore unclear whether and when the process will continue. The court will comment later on whether health reasons prevent the trial from continuing for a longer period of time.
Nine years after the Exposure of emissions manipulation The trial against Winterkorn at the Wolfsburg-based carmaker only began in early September. The former CEO denied any responsibility for the diesel scandal“Our client firmly denies the allegations made against him. We are confident that we will reach a good result for our client,” said his defense attorney Felix Dörr.
The 77-year-old is being charged in the proceedings before the Economic Criminal Division accused of commercial fraud, market manipulation and perjuryWinterkorn is said to have deceived VW buyers about the quality of the cars and deliberately failed to inform the capital market in a timely manner about the risks of fines in the crucial days of September 2015. In 2017, he is said to have given false testimony about this before the Bundestag’s investigative committee.
For the defense, however, it is clear that Winterkorn “not cheated” and “harmed no one” He also did not deliberately leave the capital market in the dark or tell the Bundestag’s investigative committee an untruth. The presumption of innocence applies.
Winterkorn was actually supposed to be in the dock with four other former VW managers and engineers in the first major fraud trial in Braunschweig. Shortly before the start of this trial in 2021, however, his complex was separated for health reasons and should now be rescheduled. Almost 90 dates were scheduled for the criminal trial until September 2025. (dpa)
