Escalating Dispute: GM Demands Arrest of Top Volkswagen Executive

A bitter dispute over alleged industrial espionage has escalated between General Motors Corp. and Volkswagen AG, with GM's German subsidiary Adam Opel AG demanding the arrest of Volkswagen's production chief, Jose Ignacio Lopez de Arriortua. The accusations center on the alleged theft of confidential information when Lopez and several colleagues left GM to join Volkswagen 14 months ago. Lopez has denied the charges, but Opel is standing by its claims, citing evidence of stolen secrets and persisting pressure on prosecutors to take action.

Key Takeaways:

• Opel has accused Volkswagen's production chief, Jose Ignacio Lopez de Arriortua, of stealing confidential information, including cost calculations, model plans, and contracts with suppliers.
• Opel claims that prosecutors have found Opel secrets on computer disks confiscated from the offices and private homes of several Volkswagen executives.
• The deleted data, which was previously unretrievable, included highly sensitive and secret information about prices charged by components suppliers.
• Opel's Karl Mauer has expressed concern that Lopez might abscond, and the company has demanded the arrest of Lopez and several other Volkswagen executives.
• Volkswagen has consistently denied the charges, with spokesman Peter Schlelein calling the allegations "insubstantial" and "an attempt to influence public opinion."
• An independent inquiry last year found no evidence that Opel documents had been used by Volkswagen.

Statistics:

• The alleged industrial espionage took place 14 months ago, when Lopez and several colleagues left GM to join Volkswagen.
• Prosecutors are investigating the allegations of stolen industrial secrets.
• The deleted data from computer disks included cost calculations, model plans, and contracts with suppliers.
• Opel claims that the data retrieved from the deleted disks was "highly sensitive and secret."

Sources:

• Reuters News Agency
• Adam Opel AG spokesperson
• Volkswagen AG spokesman
• German news magazine Focus