A wanted Irish man who has been on the run for over 25 years has reportedly been found dead in France.

Robert Stapleton is wanted in connection with a multi-million pound fraud, with Irish, UK and European Warrants for his arrest.

Lincolnshire Police previously said the 67-year-old was wanted over allegations of fraud of £5 million relating to companies he controlled.

Mr Stapleton, who has appeared on Crimewatch’s Most Wanted board, was arrested on a European arrest warrant in Ireland in 2005 but failed to surrender to extradition and disappeared.

It is now believed his body was found in a town in Brittany, France, on May 22nd. It is understood his death is not being treated as suspicious.

The Irish Department of Foreign Affairs said the French authorities have been in contact.

French authorities are working on the assumption that the dead man is Mr Stapleton, based on the documentation found on his person, but no formal identification is thought to have taken place yet.

A spokesman for Lincolnshire Police said they were aware a body had been found in France which may be Mr Stapleton, but he said they were awaiting confirmation of formal identification.

Mr Stapleton was wanted in connection with more than 30 offences involving a fraud perpetrated between 1978 and 1982 related to the collapse of his firm, Ultraleisure.

The firm, which marketed foldaway squash courts, collapsed, leaving a division of the British department of trade and industry (DTI) - the Export Credit Guarantee Department, which had guaranteed loans given to the company - out of pocket by £3 million.

It was alleged that the fraud involved company directors drawing up bogus invoices and supporting documents to show that Ultraleisure had exported goods and services to foreign buyers. Its banks - Lloyds Bank and Coutts - then advanced funds to Ultraleisure in the belief that the transactions represented on the documents were genuine.

When Ultraleisure had to repay the loan, a larger advance was obtained on similarly false documents and part of that was issued to repay the earlier borrowings. Ultraleisure therefore had to borrow larger sums of money to hide the fraud.

Mr Stapleton's wife was convicted in 1986 in Britain for participation in elements of the fraud and given a suspended sentence. Mr Stapleton had left Britain for Spain prior to this trial.

Spain did not have an extradition warrant with Britain. He returned to live in Ireland in 1994.

Mr Stapleton said he suffered a deterioration in his health due to the stress following an extradition request and his arrest by gardaí in 2005.