VW Engineer Sentenced To 40-Month Prison Term In Diesel Case (reuters.com)

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: A federal judge in Detroit sentenced former engineer James Liang to 40 months in prison on Friday for his role in Volkswagen AG's multiyear scheme to sell diesel cars that generated more pollution than U.S. clean air rules allowed. U.S. District Court Judge Sean Cox also ordered Liang to pay a $200,000 fine, 10 times the amount sought by federal prosecutors. Cox said he hoped the prison sentence and fine would deter other auto industry engineers and executives from similar schemes to deceive regulators and consumers. Prosecutors last week recommended that Liang, 63, receive a three-year prison sentence, reflecting credit for his months of cooperation with the U.S. investigation of Volkswagen's diesel emissions fraud. Liang could have received a five-year prison term under federal sentencing guidelines. Liang's lawyers had asked for a sentence of home detention and community service.

Comments

He is an executive

[Anonymous Coward]

I think the title of the slashdot article is misleading. While he was a VW Engineer he is currently a VW Executive. Also, he isn't the only one charged.
"U.S. prosecutors have charged eight current and former Volkswagen executives in connection with the diesel emissions cheating probe. Liang is one of the lowest-ranking executives charged so far."

Part of the reason they fined him and sentenced him to jail was his "pivotal" role in the fraud.

He has had 10 years to come clean and hasn't done it. So I think he deserves what is coming to him, and the other executives as well.

Re:You guys aren't even noticing the biggest fraud

[s.petry]

Great book, but not really relevant to this issue. At least not in the way you presented. US companies are subject to the same regulations as VW, so this isn't really favoritism for financial advantage to US companies. What you could say however, is that it pushes along the fall of Europe to fascist communist rule, since the actual people responsible are not facing charges or jail. Those people remain free and wealthy, while the lackey gets jack booted.