A Honda engineer who claimed to know “the truth about Takata’s inflator recall” should be compelled to testify in the Miami multidistrict litigation alleging a plot to hide reports about defective air bags, a special master recommended.
The automaker is facing civil conspiracy claims from drivers who allege Honda and Takata worked together to conceal a defect in the inflators that caused air bags to explode. Honda turned over 2013 emails in which engineer Takeru Fukuda, who has worked for Honda in Japan for 25 years, compared himself to Edward Snowden and called himself “a witness in the dark” who could “cause a complete reversal in the auto industry” by reporting his knowledge to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
