US issues arrest warrants for former VW executives over emissions cheating

‘The United States government has issued international arrest warrants for five former Volkswagen (VW) managers in connection with the dieselgate scandal.
According to the Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper, the five are accused of conspiring to commit fraud and violating US environmental regulations. At least two were reportedly confidants of former VW CEO Martin Winterkorn.
The German daily suggested Berlin will not hand over the accused to the American authorities. It said that if found guilty the suspects would face extremely long jail sentences compared to German sentencing standards. They, however, will be unable to leave Germany due to the risk of being extradited to the United States from a third country.
Former Volkswagen manager Oliver Schmidt was arrested earlier this year in Miami as he was about to fly to Germany. He was charged with conspiracy and other crimes in the company’s scheme to sell around 600,000 vehicles that failed to comply with US pollution standards. Schmidt faces up to 25 years in prison.’
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