DETROIT (AP) – U.S. prosecutors are seeking a three-year prison sentence for a Volkswagen engineer who had a key role in the company’s diesel emissions scandal.
Robert Liang (LANG) will be sentenced Friday in federal court in Detroit. He is one of two VW employees to plead guilty, although others charged in the case are in Germany and out of reach.
Prosecutors say Liang was aware that VW used software to cheat U.S. emission rules on nearly 600,000 diesel vehicles. His lawyer says he’s not “greedy or immoral” but followed orders to keep his job and support his family.
The 63-year-old Liang is asking the judge to consider a sentence of probation and 1,500 hours of community service.
The government says Liang wasn’t the mastermind but took part in “pivotal events.”