Elisabeth Mayer and Christian Charrière-Bournazel, Kerviel’s lawyers, said that SocGen sought to use him to create a “smokescreen that would distract the public’s attention from far more substantial losses that it had made in recent months, notably the unbelievable subprime affair.”

The lawyers accused the Société Générale executive board of creating the bulk of the losses attributed to Kerviel when they dumped his positions into a plunging European equities market, and that this decision “itself provoked losses of €4.5 billion.” They also claimed that Kerviel’s portfolio was profitable by about €1.5bn at the end of last year.

The bank declined to comment on the lawyers’ statement and is apparently standing by its original assessment of the losses, which it attributed to “exceptional fraud.” Kerviel stands accused of “breach of trust” and “unauthorized computer activity.” The prosecution dropped two of the heavier charges it had originally pursued, including attempted fraud and forgery. The bank continues to allege that Kerviel falsified documents in order to cover his tracks, but that charge has had its credibility lessened after the Paris prosecutor dropped the charge of fraud.

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