Stellantis’ Italian Exec Faces US Extradition Over Diesel Probe

Sergio Pasini, a manager at former carmaker Fiat Chrysler (FCA), now part of the Stellantis group, was released on Wednesday, September 29, after being arrested two days before as part of a US inquiry into diesel emissions rigging, a source familiar with the matter said.

Pasini was arrested on Monday in the northern Italian city of Ferrara during a regular patrolling service, police told Reuters earlier on Wednesday.

However, in a hearing on Wednesday the Court of Appeal of the city of Bologna ruled that Pasini should be freed as there was no risk of him escaping, the source said.

Pasini was ordered to attend a hearing in Bologna in 40 days, when all documents and a full arrest order from US authorities are available, at which the court will rule on a request for extradition to the United States, the source added.

His arrest follows an indictment in the United States earlier this year of Pasini on charges that included conspiring to rig diesel-powered vehicles to cheat on government emissions tests, another source said earlier on Wednesday.

Stellantis unit FCA US wrote in an emailed statement it would continue to fully cooperate with the authorities regarding the diesel emissions issue and had nothing else to add beyond previous statements made on the matter. The company has previously denied purposefully attempting to evade emissions requirements.

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