Washington — The US government has filed criminal charges against former Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn, accusing him of conspiring to cover up the German car maker’s diesel emissions cheating. The Justice Department’s indictment, filed in secret in March, was unsealed in US District Court on Thursday as Volkswagen held its annual meeting in Germany. Winterkorn resigned days after the scandal over polluting vehicles in the US became public in September 2015. US attorney-general Jeff Sessions, Environmental Protection Adminstration chief Scott Pruitt and other senior Trump administration official issued statements criticising VW with the indictment, which marks a rare instance of a CEO being subjected to criminal prosecution for corporate behaviour. "If you try to deceive the US, then you will pay a heavy price," Sessions said. In contrast with Volkswagen, no individuals were charged at Toyota Motor in connection with its scandal over the sudden, unintended acceleration of some if ...
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