Blumenthal Statement on Reported DOJ Criminal Investigation into Volkswagen

(WASHINGTON, DC) – U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, issued the following statement upon reports that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched a criminal investigation into Volkswagen (VW) after the auto maker admitted to cheating on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) air pollution tests:

“Lying to law enforcement authorities is a federal crime – and VW should be held accountable if it did so.  Reports of a criminal investigation are welcome.  My hope is that the punishment will fit the crime for VW, if proof is found, more appropriately than it did for General Motors. VW should face harsh penalties if they polluted and lied about it – penalties that serve as a real deterrent. I continue to be dismayed that GM faces much less severe financial fallout for its deception that led directly to tragic loss of human life. Our auto-safety laws have been the province of industry lobbyists for too long: we must rebalance the law by putting in place real and meaningful criminal and financial penalties – a true deterrent against automakers concealing information that threatens human life.”

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