German Volkswagen manager Oliver Schmidt, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy and other fraud charges in US federal court in connection with the company’s diesel emissions cheating scheme, has been sentenced to seven years in prison and a fine of $400 000.
Schmidt, who was arrested by the FBI in Miami in January, pleaded guilty in August to conspiring to defraud the United States and to conspiring to commit wire fraud, as well as violating the Clean Air Act.
The 48-year-old had held a top position in the carmaker’s US emissions compliance team between February 2012 and March 2015.
Schmidt’s lawyers say he “accepts full responsibility” for his role in the scandal. But they say he’s less culpable than others. VW pleaded guilty as a corporation in March.
The German automaker also reached a 14.7 billion dollars civil agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The agency called on Volkswagen to spend 10 more billion dollars to buy back or repair the rigged diesel cars it sold in the U.S
DETROIT (AP)
