Goodyear Tire Scandal: "Defective models are still in circulation, there will be other accidents," worries whistleblower Sophie Rollet

For nearly eleven years, the former childminder has been fighting, from her small house in Geney, in the Doubs, to bring to light the truth about heavy goods vehicle accidents caused by Goodyear tire bursts . Crashes caused by very specific models, the Marathon LHS II and LHS II +, whose defects the company has known about since the 2010s, but for which it has not launched a recall procedure, in order to avoid bad publicity.

These events cost the life of Sophie Rollet's husband, Jean-Paul, in an accident on the A36 in the summer of 2014. They have led to two managers from Goodyear France and Goodyear Opérations SA being summoned to the Besançon court on Tuesday, May 13, with a view to a possible indictment for "involuntary manslaughter," "deception," and "deceptive commercial practices."

Are you confident about the outcome of this summons?

Given the evidence in this case, and everything that was found during the searches conducted last year, yes, I have confidence. But we've been waiting for these indictments for so long... So I don't rule out a turnaround. In fact, I'm waiting for action. Finally.

Thanks to these searches, the courts have expanded their proceedings against Goodyear, which threatens the company with much heavier fines, up to 10% of its turnover, if convicted. Is this a good thing?

Yes. Because if the justice system does this, it's because it has very concrete evidence against it. In this type of case, it must establish a strategy, make a drastic selection of what it can and cannot pursue. That's why only