Spain’s public prosecutor calls for VW to be investigated for fraud

Spain’s High Court public prosecutor has called for an investigation into the Volkswagen Group’s alleged rigging of its vehicles in an attempt to reduce emission levels during inspections. In a writ sent on Monday morning to the central court, the prosecutor states that the German automobile group committed offenses related to misleading advertising, public subsidies given to the manufacturer by the Spanish government, and environmental legislation.

The public prosecutor is the latest of a number of collectives, including far-right pseudo union Manos Limpias (Clean hands), to file a claim against VW. In its writ, the public prosecutor explains that the manipulation of the manufacturer’s engines “appears to consist in the installation of an IT program that detects when the vehicle is undergoing testing,” and “reduces the polluting emissions to within the parameters required by environmental regulations.”

The public prosecutor is the latest of a number of collectives to file a claim against VW

The prosecutor also points out that Volkswagen “has issued a number of press releases in which it admits the facts of the case and the adoption of immediate measures to offer a solution to the problem.”

The prosecutor goes on to state that should the information about the group’s diesel engines be true, “the affected vehicles, under normal working conditions, are emitting polluting gases that are well above the permitted limits (possibly as many as 40 times said maximum) […].”

The prosecutor calls on the judge to carry out a series of investigations, which include a request for Spain’s Industry Ministry to send “all of the information that it has so far been able to bring together about the case.” This includes any reports received about the scandal from the VW group itself.

The prosecutor has also called for information from the German manufacturer about the “affected vehicles that have been sold in Spain,” details of the organization’s structure in Spain, and information about the company that produced the fraudulent software.

According to information already supplied by VW, 257,479 Volkswagens, 221,783 Seats, 147,095 Audis, 37,082 Skodas and 20,187 Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles are equipped with the fraudulent engine in Spain.

English version by Simon Hunter.