A man involved in the theft of 61 vehicles from Volkswagen stock after the Dieselgate scandal has been sentenced to eight years in prison.
Following the recall of nearly 500,000 vehicles after the scandal dieselgate of Volkswagen, individuals saw the opportunity to set up a theft network. The storage areas were not secure and some took the opportunity to steal several dozen vehicles.
61 Volkswagen and Audi vehicles were stolen in a few months
In the space of a few months, between avril et September 2017Romane Porter, aged 47, orchestrated the theft of 61 cars with the help of his accomplice Daniel Onorati. The stolen cars were all Audi or Volkswagen. They were also all affected by the dieselgate recall. Originally, these vehicles were to be destroyed or modified. However, both individuals had other plans.
The stolen vehicles were intended to be illegally resold outside the state of Michigan. So, the FBI and the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Auto Theft Unit conducted a investigation for several months. These numerous efforts allowed the authorities to finally arrest Romane Porter and all her accomplices.
photo credit : Wikimedia Commons In 2017, the Dieselgate scandal shook the automotive world.
In April 2023, Romane Porter was finally recognized guilty conspiracy and transportation of stolen vehicles. These heavy accusations led him to big prison sentence.
Ironic consequences compared to the initial dieselgate scandal
Federal judge Denise Page Hood finally sentenced Romane Porter in September 2024. For her central role in this theft case, he gets exactly 97 months in prison. That’s a little over eight years. In addition, he will have to reimburse the sum of 683 080 dollars. Additionally, this is the value of all stolen vehicles. Furthermore, once he has completed his stay in prison, he will be under judicial supervision for three years.
Cheyvoryea Gibson is an FBI special agent who was in charge of the case in the state of Michigan. He spoke about CBS News Detroit on the conviction of Romane Porter:
“Romane Porter’s conviction sends a clear message that those who conspire to commit fraud and theft will face the harshest penalties.”
Furthermore, he took the opportunity to thank local and federal authorities for their dedication in dismantling this sophisticated theft network.
The case of Romane Porter is quite surprising. The latter was sentenced to a harsher prison sentence that some executives involved in the dieselgate scandal in 2017. Oliver Schmidta former director of Volkswagen in the United States, was sentenced to 84 months in prison et 400 000 dollars fined for its role in emissions fraud. Ultimately, this highlights how seriously the authorities have taken cases of car thefts recalled by the manufacturer.
Source: www.autoplus.fr
