VW Manager Deported From China After Alleged Thailand Drug Use

A senior Volkswagen AG executive in China was deported to Germany after being held over alleged drug use, according to local police and media reports, as trade tensions escalate between Brussels and Beijing.

Beijing police detained Jochen Sengpiehl, VW’s chief marketing officer and head of product strategy for China, after his return from Thailand on suspicion that he had consumed cocaine and marijuana during the trip, according to the police’s report. The charge triggered Beijing’s administrative punishment law, requiring Sengpiehl to be held for 10 days through Oct. 20, the report dated Oct. 10 said.