China has deported a VW executive for allegedly using drugs while in Thailand

BEIJING — A senior executive for Volkswagen in China has been deported for allegedly using cocaine and marijuana while on vacation in Thailand, according to Chinese authorities and German media reports.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed Wednesday that a Volkswagen employee had been deported after being detained for 10 days. A Beijing police report said an investigation had determined that the 56-year-old man, which it identified only by the initial J, had used both drugs on Oct. 5 and that he had been sentenced to detention from Oct. 10-20 as an administrative penalty.

Germany’s top-selling Bild newspaper and other media outlets reported his name as Jochen Sengpiehl, whose LinkedIn profile lists him as Volkswagen’s chief marketing officer in China. Bild reported he tested positive for drug use after returning from a holiday in Thailand.

Volkswagen declined to comment on the reports, citing labor and data protection laws. China is a major market for the German automaker and one in which it has come under intense competitive pressure in recent years from China’s rapidly growing makers of electric vehicles.

Drug use is an administrative offense in China punishable by a 10- to 15-day detention and a fine of up to 2,000 yuan ($280).

Thailand legalized marijuana in 2022 but Chinese authorities have warned that use of the drug overseas is equivalent to using it at home and subject to the same penalties.