Investment Loss- National Media

14th April 2026
Posted in Daily Mail, Fraud recovery experts, Legal Help, Sunday Times, The Sun

Former England rugby star spoke to the national media about an investment loss after he had been tricked into sending seed funding as part of an detailed and orchestrated fraud.

Our client Paul Sampson told of the devastating effects of the fraud had had on his life, leaving him homeless and, at times, being forced to sleep in his car.

The sophisticated scam included a very detailed business proposal which we have spent months investigating and proving that every facet and promise was untrue.

Barclays have initially rejected Mr Sampson’s claim under their fraud reimbursement scheme, saying that the investment loss was outside the six year limitation period.

We are currently representing Mr Sampson to the Financial Ombudsman Service to say that the post-concussion syndrome that suffered as a result of head injuries meant it was not possible for him to understand that he had been defrauded.

We got Mr Sampson a diagnosis from Dr Az Hakeem, a Consultant Psychiatrist and Medical Director of Psyche Clinic based in Harley Street, London.

He told the media: “Post concussion syndrome destroys cognitive functions that are needed to recognise fraud.

“Fraud detection requires a person to notice inconsistencies, question what they have been told, and conclude they have been deliberately deceived.

“Memory fragmentation means earlier representations cannot be held in mind long enough to compare against later events.

“The syndrome in this case was also co-presented with depression and anxiety which was exacerbated by the betrayal and Mr Sampson’s own personal experiences. This further suppressed the cognitive vigilance fraud recognition demands.

“Reading about a comparable fraud suddenly provided the framework the brain could not independently construct. Mr Sampson was not generating new reasoning – he was borrowing it. That single moment of external clarity, cutting through years of neurological fog, is entirely consistent with this condition.”

Speaking of Mr Sampson’s investment loss, Martin Richardson, senior partner at Richardson Hartley Law, said: “We’ve managed to prove that every part of the business proposal given to Mr Sampson was fictious. 

It appears that they saw a vulnerability in Paul and took advantage. 

“Mr Sampson’s love of the military was also exploited as they claimed part of his role would be to help veterans.

“This was a well planned and well executed strategy to take all of Paul’s savings. It’s ruined his life.

“We believe that there’s a very strong argument to say that the only reason Paul didn’t bring his claim within the six year limitation period was because of the post concussion syndrome that he suffers from. This is backed up by the psychiatrist’s report.

“We are currently awaiting for the Financial Ombudsman Service to determine whether Paul’s exceptional circumstance mean that his claim can still be heard, particularly as he missed the deadline by just a few weeks. We believe that refusing Paul the ability to make a fraud reimbursement claim because of the fact he suffers from a disability that meant it was not possible to bring a claim in time would be an affront to justice.

“ I’m very hopeful that the Ombudsman will use its powers to do the right thing. Barclays has already accepted that Mr Sampson has suffered a fraud and that should mean he can claim back money under the fraud reimbursement scheme signed up to by the bank.”

The investment loss story appeared in The Sunday Times, The Sun and the Daily Mail newspapers.

Have you lost money to an investment scam? If so, contact us today to see how we can help.