$545,000 added to reparation total

A Christchurch criminal currently owes the nation's biggest reparation payment totalling more than $545,000.

Former C&M Finance adviser Geoffrey Michael Adams, 43, was convicted of defrauding 10 seniors of $547,000 over a 10-year period.

He was convicted of obtaining by deception and jailed for three years on April 16, 2010, and given a non-parole period of 18 months for the seriousness of the offending.

The Star understands Adams was released from prison in June this year.

At the time of his sentence Judge Raoul Neave said he was running a Ponzi scheme, where people were being paid interest from the money he was receiving from new investors. He had created a false bank account and his documentation was misleading.

But the repercussions of his actions still remain fresh in the minds of his victims when they receive a "pathetic" reparation payment of $50 each month.

Retired Westport fisherman Ron Stuart, 82, made several deposits with C&M; Finance over 10 years.

Adams drained Stuart's savings.

"I was upset and disappointed when I found out what had happened. He stole $151,000 from me, excluding interest. He promised a return of nearly 9 per cent on my investments. He said it was building up nicely. I trusted him," he said.

Mr Stuart said his monthly reparation payment of $50 started about four months ago but he said Adam's will never be able to pay him back the full amount.

"It's frustrating. He stole my money, my savings. I worked so hard for that and he just came along and stole it. I was upset. I could never get in contact with him. I've only been paid about $200. It's ridiculous," he said.

When Mr Stuart was approached by "well presented" Adams, he said the investment opportunity was plausible.

"Everytime he would come and visit he would always have a brand new flash car. I should've smelt a rat then but I probably wouldn't have got the money out of him. There was enough in the investment to make it seem credible. I was fooled by him just like everyone else," he said.

A staggering $10.8 million in reparation money is owed by more than 2000 offenders in Christchurch.

Three other criminals owe their victims more than $200,000 each for offence against unlisted regulation, false pretences by cheque and theft by person in a special relationship.

Another offender owes their victim $150,000 for property theft.

Regional Victim Support manager Donna Neill said non-payment of reparation prolonged the suffering for victims.

"A lot of the payment that is received is done so on a drip-feed basis which is really frustrating because if a victim needs to replace something it impacts significantly. In some ways every time a small amount arrives by cheque or into their bank account it can serve as a reminder of the crime," she said.