Given that the cheating software was installed across models, makes, and years in multiple manufacturing locations, it is inconceivable that this was the work of rogue engineers.
This scandal is the latest example of a flagrant disregard of law and public welfare by calculating corporate entities. Corporations are a force for good, but only if they are appropriately regulated. If they are to be people, they should be held responsible as are people who knowingly and systematically break the law.
Every ton of NOx emitted has the global warming potential of over 200 tons of carbon dioxide. The NOx emitted by the fleet of cheating VW vehicles in excess of standards surpassed 1M tons per year. Capitalism is rightly based on markets. Make them pay the market price for their cheating.