I've seen people say this often, how do you envision it working?

What happens to all the employees, assets, shareholders etc.?

If VW is "executed" do you mean all the shares are seized and re-sold or do you mean everyone loses their jobs - discs are wiped, factories demolished etc etc.?

As long as you realise that "taking it out on the shareholders" means your 401K, your parents IRAs, etc.

Seeing how most corporations care more about pleasing shareholders than pleasing the government, workers, or customers, then yes, this kind of behavior needs to negatively impact investors as well. That would powerfully disincentivize profitable behavior that hurts society overall.

Those people benefitted from the illegal goings on as well.