German prosecutors open investigation of former VW CEO

Former Volkswagen boss Martin Winterkorn is under investigation in Germany for alleged market manipulation.

German prosecutors on Monday said they have opened an investigation into former Volkswagen AG CEO Martin Winterkorn over market manipulation allegations stemming from the company’s emissions testing debacle.

He and a number of other former VW employees have meanwhile already come under investigation by Braunschweig prosecutors on charges of fraud.

The opening of the probe comes at an awkward time for VW, which will be holding its annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday.

Instead, Mr Winterkorn said that his resignation had been in the best interests of the company.

Several board members are also being investigated, but not supervisory board Chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch, who was CFO when investigators found the issues with the diesel-powered cars.

VW chose to issue a formal public notice to investors on September 22, however the company is believed to have been aware of the Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board inquiries at least a month earlier.

In 2015, Volkswagen admitted that millions of diesel vehicles had been rigged to cheat on emissions testing.

Volkswagen has set aside 16.2 billion euros ($18.3 billion) from last year’s earnings to deal with the costs of recalls and fixes.