31 July 2019; DW: Rupert Stadler, who ran Audi until 2018, was arrested last year for his involvement in the "dieselgate" scandal. He faces three separate charges.
Former Audi Chief Executive Rupert Stadler was indicted on Wednesday over his role in the "dieselgate" emissions-cheating scandal.
Prosecutors in Munich filed charges of "fraud, indirect discrimination and false advertising."
It is alleged that Stadler was partly responsible for Audi's decision to sell diesel vehicles with illegally-manipulated emission values, which allowed the company to cut costs, and seemingly adhere to regulators' tests.
Stadler's lawyer, however, said the former Audi boss rejects the allegations made against him. The lawyer added that he will comment on the charges filed against his client after comprehensively going through the case.
Regulations circumvented
Stadler is charged with having knowledge about the manipulation by "the end of September 2015 at the latest," the prosecution said. Despite this, he allowed the process to continue.
Two engineers and a former manager also face charges of knowingly selling cars for Audi, Porsche and Volkswagen fitted with so-called "defeat devices." The prosecution estimated that over 400,000 such vehicles were sold, mainly in the US or European markets.
Prosecutors must decide if Stadler and the other defendants will stand trial. Courts in Braunschweig and Munich are investigating 69 individuals who they believe may have been involved in the scandal.
An Audi spokesperson said it was in the company's interest to clarify the issues that led to the diesel crisis. "Until this has happened, the presumption of innocence must prevail," he said.
Audi was fined €800m ($892 million) in October over the dieselgate prosecution — it is estimated the scandal has cost the company around €3.4 billion since 2015.
Volkswagen group affected
The scandal came to light in 2015 when it was found that Volkswagen (VW) fitted its diesel cars with the "defeat devices." These made it appear that the vehicles were producing less emissions than they actually did.
They were able to keep to legal restrictions on diesel emissions in test phases, despite emitting much more than is allowed. Former VW boss Martin Winterkorn had charges brought against him in April this year.
Senior executives at Audi and Porsche, which are owned by the Volkswagen group, also face huge fines, and scrutiny over their knowledge and participation in the affair.
