Herndon, Virginia - Michael Horn is stepping down as chief executive of Volkswagen America, which is mired in a far-reaching scandal over cheating on emissions in diesel-powered vehicles.
The company announced on Wednesday that Horn's departure would take effect immediately by mutual understanding.
Hinrich Woebcken, recently named VW's head of the North American region, will take Horn's place.
#Dieselgate: Winterkorn was warned, says V W
Horn, 54, assumed the top Volkswagen job in the United States in January 2014. His departure was announced after the troubled carmaker's shares fell sharply early on Wednesday, following media reports that US authorities were widening their investigation into the emissions scandal that has rocked the automotive group.
The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the probe, reported that the US Justice Department was planning to use a far-reaching law against bank fraud in its investigation into the emissions affair, as well as looking at possible tax violations. The move raises the risk of VW being hit by new penalties.
VW already faces more than 500 lawsuit from US car owners, after admitting in September 2015 it had installed software aimed at cheating emissions tests in about 11 million of its diesel models around the world.
SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES
An offshoot of Europe's biggest insurance group is also considering joining legal action in Germany against VW because of the diesel scandal. A spokesman for Allianz Global Investors - which holds a small stake in VW - said on Wednesday the group was examining whether its “investors have been damaged by the scandal and whether we then need to take the corresponding steps”.
Prosecutors in France, where about 950 000 Volkswagens are affected by the scandal, announced this week they planned to launch a serious fraud investigation into VW.
But Volkswagen’s top union representative, Bernd Osterloh, warned on Tuesday at a meeting of VW workers of the possible drastic consequences of the scandal.
“If Volkswagen's sustainability is endangered by a penalty of a so-far unique size, this will also have dramatic social consequences - not just at our US locations, but also in Europe and elsewhere,“ he said.
“We very much hope that the US authorities also ultimately have this social and employment dimension as part of their consideration,” he told the meeting at Volkswagen’s headquarters in Wolfsburg.
DPA