Fraud victims turn down 85% offer

VICTIMS of Dordogne conman Graham Templeton have rejected an increased offer of compensation from bank Société Générale over their claim for €2million.

The bank, which allowed Templeton to pay cheques written out to a Société Générale investment fund into his own account, had increased its offer from 75% to 85%.

A meeting of the 12 victims - mostly expats with the eldest, Bill Sarginson, being 88 - threw out the offer after hearing the bank was refusing any increase to the only French victim, Joelle Vinent.

Templeton, who is serving a two-year term at a prison outside Paris, counter-signed cheques made out to the bank and was able to pay the money into his own account. The fraud dates back six years.

The victims said: "We wanted the bank to behave competently when we paid it our money and it didn’t - now we want it to behave decently to repay the money it has lost us."