Arrests, raids and recalls takes shine off luxury Volkswagen-owned Porsche

The latest string of arrests, raids and recalls has taken the shine off luxury Volkswagen-owned Porsche. In the last few weeks, an EU-wide recall has been triggered for some 60,000 Porsche Cayenne and Porsche Macan models that are suspected of containing emissions cheating software.

This news came just weeks after Porsche had also been accused of cheating emissions testing by starting vehicles in second gear to lower tax bands for owners.

But this isn’t the only recent headache the VW-owned luxury brand has had to face: arrests and raids have been rife as prosecutors in more than one territory intend to get to the bottom of their involvement in emissions cheating behaviour.

Joerg Kerner – head of powertrain development – arrested

Joerg Kerner – head of powertrain development – was arrested last month and was reportedly deemed a “flight risk”, which is quite a statement.

German prosecutors are said to have raided Kerner’s home as part of ongoing investigations into a number of current and former Porsche employees who are being probed in a huge fraud case over emissions cheating.

Given the history and stature of the Volkswagen-owned luxury car brand, these arrests, recalls and probes can’t be good for business.

Doctoring emissions results

The recent worrying developments didn’t just include arrests and fraud probes. In Korea, a number of Porsche officials have been charged with allegedly doctoring emissions results to meet Korea’s emissions regulations.

Porsche AG South Korea are under fire, and a number of raids and arrests have already taken place. BMW and Mercedes-Benz are also thought to be a part of the investigations.

The allegations are that models between 2014 and 2015 – which are years that Volkswagen was using its so-called illegal “defeat devices” here in the UK – thousands of models may have passed emissions regulations as a result of results being doctored.

Porsche are also accused of violating environmental laws and the obstruction of business. Porsche reportedly rejects the allegations made against them.