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VW sued by US justice department VW sued by US justice department
(34 minutes later)
The US justice department is suing Volkswagen over the emissions scandal that saw the German car giant fit software in millions of cars to cheat emissions tests.The US justice department is suing Volkswagen over the emissions scandal that saw the German car giant fit software in millions of cars to cheat emissions tests.
In September last year, following an investigation by US regulators, VW admitted fitting the so-called cheat device on 11 million vehicles globally. In September last year, following an investigation by US regulators, VW admitted fitting the so-called defeat device on 11 million vehicles globally.
The scandal has hit sales of VWs worldwide.The scandal has hit sales of VWs worldwide.
The company has put aside billions of euros to deal with the fallout.The company has put aside billions of euros to deal with the fallout.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. The lawsuit, on behalf of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), was filed on Monday in a federal court in Detroit, Michigan.
If you want to receive Breaking News alerts via email, or on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App then details on how to do so are available on this help page. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on Twitter to get the latest alerts. "The complaint alleges that nearly 600,000 diesel engine vehicles had illegal defeat devices installed that impair their emission control systems and cause emissions to exceed EPA's standards, resulting in harmful air pollution," the filing said.
It also alleges that VW "violated" clean air laws by selling cars that were different in design from those originally cleared for sale by the EPA.
"With today's filing, we take an important step to protect public health by seeking to hold Volkswagen accountable for any unlawful air pollution, setting us on a path to resolution," said assistant administrator Cynthia Giles for the EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.
"So far, recall discussions with the company have not produced an acceptable way forward. These discussions will continue in parallel with the federal court action."
The department said the filing was just the first step in "bringing Volkswagen to justice".
The carmaker is also facing separate criminal charges, and a raft of private class-action lawsuits filed by VW owners.