German prosecutors are investigating Wendelin Wiedeking, Porsche's former chief executive, and other people close to the sports car maker, alleging market manipulation by passing on inside information in the failed takeover attempt of Volkswagen.
Prosecutors in Stuttgart yesterday raided the headquarters of Porsche, which recently agreed to merge with VW after an attempt to acquire the much bigger rival had pushed it to the brink of bankruptcy.
Porsche rebuffed the prosecutor's allegations. It confirmed that Mr Wiedeking and Holger Härter, the company's former chief financial officer, who were forced to leave the company last month after they lost the backing of the family owners, were among the suspects.