Volkswagen pleads guilty as part of US$4.3b US diesel emission settlement

Detroit

VOLKSWAGEN AG pleaded guilty on Friday to fraud, obstruction of justice and falsifying statements as part of a US$4.3 billion settlement reached with the US Justice Department in January over the carmaker's diesel emissions scandal.

It was the first time the company has pleaded guilty to criminal conduct in any court in the world, a company spokesman said, and comes as the carmaker strives to put the most expensive ever motor industry scandal behind it.

The September 2015 disclosure that VW intentionally cheated on emissions tests for at least six years led to the ouster of its chief executive, damaged the company's reputation around …