Top Target of VW Diesel Probe Advised Not to Leave Germany

The former head of engine development at Volkswagen AG has been advised not to leave Germany because he could be arrested as part of a U.S. probe about diesel emission cheating, Bild reports.

The newspaper cites comments by Heinz-Jakob Neusser’s lawyer regarding his indictment by the U.S. Dept. of Justice for violation of environmental laws and conspiracy to fraud regarding the use of illegal software to rig diesel pollution tests.

Reuters cites U.S. court documents that say Neusser is accused of developing the so-called “defeat device” software used in the engines. VW had admitted to rigging 11 million such diesels worldwide, including about 555,000 in the U.S.

Last week the U.S. issued arrest warrants through the Interpol police network for Neusser and four lesser former VW executives claimed to be part of the diesel emission scandal. The international warrants enable the men to be arrested almost anywhere outside Germany and extradited to the U.S. for trial.

Reuters says the four other former executives being sought are:

• Richard Dorenkamp, who led a team that developed the diesels sold in the U.S. market
• Bernd Gottweis, formerly in charge of VW quality management
• Jens Hadler, former head of VW engine development
• Juergen Peter, former VW quality manager

A fifth Justice Dept. suspect, Oliver Schmidt, was arrested in Miami in January and is being held for a trial scheduled to begin early next year. Schmidt, who headed VW’s emissions and engineering center in Michigan, faces 11 felony charges carrying a potential combined maximum sentence of 169 years in prison.