German prosecutors investigate Bosch staff over VW

FRANKFURT - Reuters

AFP photo

Public prosecutors in the German city of Stuttgart are investigating whether staff at auto parts supplier Robert Bosch GmbH was involved in the rigging of emissions tests by Volkswagen (VW), the prosecutor’s office said on Dec. 16.

Stuttgart-based Bosch, which makes a diesel engine management program used by several top automakers including VW, declined to comment on specific investigations.

However, a company spokesperson said, “We are cooperating in principle with all authorities who want to contribute to the clarification of the facts.”

As is the custom of German prosecutors, a spokesperson for the Stuttgart prosecutor’s office declined to name the companies involved.

“We have started investigations against unknown individuals,” the spokesperson said. “The action is directed at a company based in Stuttgart which is suspected of involvement in a possible offence by a large German automobile producer in the context of manipulating emissions.”

The investigations had been triggered by media reports about the case, the spokesperson added.

Reuters reported last month that U.S. federal prosecutors with the Justice Department were examining whether Bosch knew or participated in Volkswagen’s years-long efforts to circumvent U.S. diesel emissions tests, citing people familiar with the matter.

Bosch, the world’s largest auto supplier, is also among the targets of a number of class action law suits filed in the United States.