As part of Volkswagen’s (VW) ongoing probe, police raided the company’s French headquarters on Friday as the German automaker’s emissions scandal expands to Europe.
According to the Telegraph, prosecutors swept through the embattled German automaker’s main office in Villers-Cotterets in northern France and another office near Paris on Friday, seizing data devices, documents and computer hardware. The company confirmed on Sunday that it is “co-operating fully with authorities.”
France is a big market for VW, almost one million diesel cars under the VW brand, which contained the emissions rigging software, have been sold in France in recent years. Police have also raided the automaker’s offices in Germany and Italy earlier this month.
In Germany, investigators found less than 10 suspects associated with the pollution-cheating scandal. The company’s sales have plummeted in light of the emissions test debacle. In addition to forking over billions in fines, legal costs and class-action lawsuits, VW faces serious reputational risks. Reports reveal that the company has set aside $7.3 billion to deal with the scandal—a number that is expected to increase as more information emerges from the investigations.
The Financial Times said that Christine Hohmann-Dennhardt, compliance chief, Daimler will join the VW board in a newly created position charged with overseeing integrity and legal affairs.
The scandal-ridden automaker is expected to recall a total of 8.5 million diesel vehicles in Europe.
In the U.S., VW is under a federal government investigation.
In September, the U.S. government charged that VW had sold more than 500,000 Volkswagen and Audi model cars in the United States with software that was designed to meet emission standards for diesel engines when tested, but pumped out 30 to 40 percent above limit emissions when on the road.
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