BREAKING: Porsche offices raided on suspicion of stock manipulation
by Chris Paukert on Aug 20th 2009 at 12:56PM 
The soap opera surrounding Volkswagen AG and Porsche has just taken a turn for the legal, as Bloomberg reports that the company's German offices have been raided by prosecutors who are investigating whether the automaker has violated security laws.
The German prosecutor's office seized documents amidst the allegations of stock price manipulation and insider trading, prompting Porsche to issue a statement denying the allegations while vowing complete cooperation (available after the jump). The probe stems from the sports car maker's attempt to gain control of parent Volkswagen, and the investigation is reportedly focusing on recently departed CEO Wendelin Wiedeking as well as ex-CFO Holger Haerter.
As you may recall, Porsche had tried to take over VW back in May, but that maneuver failed because of the company's swirling debt and a veto on the action by Lower Saxony. Porsche has since been swallowed up by the very company it was once seeking to take over, with an additional stake going to Qatar investors. You can read more by clicking on the link below, but be sure to hit the jump to read Porsche's official statement.
Gallery: 2010 Porsche Panamera
[Sources: Bloomberg, Porsche | Image: David Hecker/AFP/Getty]]
PRESS RELEASE:
Press-Information No. 27/09
20/08/2009
Suspected Breach of Publicity Duties
The public prosecutor's office investigates at Porsche
Stuttgart. Stuttgart. Investigative proceedings led by the public prosecutor's office have been carried out at Porsche Automobil Holding SE and Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, both in Stuttgart. This Thursday morning, officials from the public prosecutor's office in Stuttgart with judicial search warrants arrived at the administrative headquarters of the companies in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen. The officials then searched the business premises of the companies, seizing numerous business documents in the process.
According to information provided by the public prosecutor's office in charge of investigations, there is a suspicion of breaching the publication duty as prescribed by the German Stock Corporation Act and furthermore of market manipulation.
Porsche is rejecting these allegations. The company is cooperating in the efforts of the public prosecutor's office and is offering investigating officials its full support in order to clarify the issue as quickly as possible.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Promegio 1:36PM (8/20/2009)
Can't we all just get along???
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Heimbachae 1:14PM (8/20/2009)
ZOINKS SCOOBY!!!
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Paul 6:22PM (8/20/2009)
A lot of people have been wondering what's taken them so long: This case was a massive manipulation that foolish individuals had told the press had been planned from the start. It resulted in huge hedge funds being wiped out overnight, with at least two suicides resulting from subsequent bankruptcies.
If they didn't hide their culpability I think these gents are going to prison.
tankd0g 8:47PM (8/20/2009)
Oh they did it alright, but as far as I know, at the time, it was all perfectly legal.
Aloysius Vampa 1:14PM (8/20/2009)
Oh snap.
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JS 1:14PM (8/20/2009)
Ruh Roh!
Porsche should stick to making great cars, not all this corporate wrangling they have been trying to do for the past year or so...
Maybe we can finally get the change in management we have been hoping for. My vote goes to the person that can deliver a new GT1!
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sparrk 1:24PM (8/20/2009)
i can't say i'm surprised.i love Porsche cars (the sport cars) and Porsche engineers , but i always hated the guys who control the cash in that company.
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JerryB 9:24PM (8/20/2009)
Are they the ones responsible for the $500 floor mats? :-)
Ligor 1:33PM (8/20/2009)
uh, kinda like they cried when the GT-R spanked the 911's ring time
guess those accusations can be put to rest now
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sparrk 1:40PM (8/20/2009)
then how do you explain the GTR getting it's ass spanked on all the other race tracks ?
IK 1:52PM (8/21/2009)
what are you talking about
the GT-R is even faster than the Porsche GT2 on the tsukuba
BigMcLargeHuge 3:35PM (8/20/2009)
Wow folks,
You know voting up stupidity actually makes you all stupid as well.
I realize Ligor's remark was off-topic,
But the 911 Turbo has gone 0-for-15 on dry tracks against the GT-R.
i.e., the GT-R has spanked the 911 Turbo 15 straight times. 15 wins
no losses.
I'm sure I'll be voted down because this thread is drawing out the idiot
fanboys in denial because of its title, but that's your problem not mine. I've got
accuracy on my side.
There is no evidence whatsoever it has ever been 'spanked' by the car
in question.
http://fastestlaps.com/index.php?page_id=compare&car1=4717b80e35715&car2=4585844a79f19
Ligor 10:57PM (8/24/2009)
BigMcLarge huge
thanks for helping me make the point that Porsche lately is off it's game and needs to realize it need to once again wake up and step up to the plate and show how they do it
to put some more salt on those wounded the coming C7 will beat out any remaining life from Porsche in the $50k price point with 911 performance - just wait and see
RG 1:44PM (8/20/2009)
:popcorn:
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Nozferat 1:47PM (8/20/2009)
IMAGINE THAT...a corrupt corporation...what a novel idea.
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compy386 1:47PM (8/20/2009)
I'm surprised it took this long. I was taking an options and futures course at the time and the professor basically said if Porsche did what it did in the US, people would be in jail. Fingers crossed that happens here.
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catchmyshadow 2:11PM (8/20/2009)
that was a huge insider stock manipulation from Porsche last year, dailight robbery if u ask me. not that i would care that much but some of the former Porsche repres.(incl. WW and Haerter) are pretty much responsible for some suicides, committed by ruined traders. incl. A. Merckle and others: http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheat-sheet/item/german-billionaire-suicide/obit/
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Uber Guy 2:14PM (8/20/2009)
Ach du heilige Scheisse!
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kalak451 2:17PM (8/20/2009)
So exactly what did they(Porsche) do? Are there any articles out there with specifics?
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BigMcLargeHuge 4:37PM (8/20/2009)
Well if we accept that they never had any hope of paying off the massive debt that they took out to buy VW....
Then part of this could have been planned from the start. They owned 50% stock of a massive VW company on pure debt.
Their solution was to offer up stock for their tiny company to VW investors and Qatar...
Driving the company they are responsible for (morally as well, since that's peoples' livelihoods) into bankruptcy so they could make on stock in a separate company?
So Porsche board members walk off with paid-off ownership in the massive VW corp by saying "to hell with Porsche AG, we want to retire."
Some people would have gotten fired, lives ruined, just so others could get richer. That is corruption for sure. Whether it is actually illegal or not, I don't know much about EU laws against stock-fixing.