Federal Investigation: GM recall uncovers ‘criminal wrongdoing’

NEW YORK: General Motors (GM) is negotiating what could be a record fine with US justice authorities after a federal investigation into a defect linked to at least 104 deaths uncovered criminal wrongdoing. The Times cited people familiar with the inquiry as saying that a settlement likely to surpass the $1.2 billion paid out by Toyota over sudden unintended acceleration could be reached in the next few months. The report said GM had sought to cooperate with investigators – in contrast to Toyota which battled prosecutors – and could earn a “cooperation credit” for its stance on the probe. The report said former GM employees, including some who were fired last year, could face criminal charges while the company itself was still negotiating exactly what misconduct it would admit to. GM is under investigation for why it waited more than a decade after first uncovering a deadly problem with an ignition-switch used in many of its cars to start recalling vehicles.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 24^th, 2015.

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