Former Audi boss Rupert Stadler (60) has admitted misconduct in the fraud process surrounding the diesel scandal. He could have intervened but failed to do so, according to a statement read by his defense attorney on Tuesday. He very much regrets this. He sees “that it would have taken more care”. Stadler himself confirmed the statements with a “yes”. According to an agreement with the court and the public prosecutor’s office, the proceedings are expected to end with a suspended sentence.
With the confession on the 168th day of the trial Stadler becomes the first member of the VW Group Board of Management, which admitted in court to the allegation of fraud by omission in the diesel scandal. The Economic Criminal Court had promised the 60-year-old a suspended sentence of one and a half to two years if he made a comprehensive confession and paid 1.1 million euros. Court spokesman Laurent Lafleur said Stadler had “fully admitted” the allegation of fraud by omission.
Stadler, who had maintained his innocence for years, had his Confession announced in early May, but you still have time to prepare. Before that, the court had made it clear that without a confession he would have faced imprisonment.
Maintained innocence for years
Because according to the preliminary assessment of the chamber expressed at the time, Stadler should have recognized by July 2016 at the latest that the exhaust gas values could have been manipulated. Instead of getting to the bottom of the matter and informing the trading partners, he allowed the sale of the cars to continue until the beginning of 2018. Stadler has now admitted this.
Stadler explained that he had not been able to solve the diesel crisis in the Audi Group. He initially relied on the experts, but subsequently failed to provide clarification.
“I didn’t know that vehicles had been manipulated and buyers had been harmed as a result, but I recognized it as possible and accepted it with approval.” He very much regrets that.
After the confession, the process, which has been ongoing since September 2020, could soon come to an end – probably in June. The accused former head of Audi engine development, Wolfgang Hatz (64), and two of his senior engineers have already confessed to initiating the design of the engine software. With impermissible defeat devices, the cars did comply with the nitrogen oxide limit values on the test bench, but not on the road. Also Hatz and a Engineers can expect probation according to court promises. The proceedings against the other engineer have already been discontinued against a payment of money.