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(The Canadian Press)

By The Associated Press

PARIS - French judicial officials say a trader blamed by the bank Societe General for a massive fraud is now in custody.

Financial police in Paris were to question Jerome Kerviel as part of a probe into Societe Generale's announcement Thursday that the 31-year-old trader was behind a fraud costing the bank $7.14 billion.

The judicial officials are speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.

Skeptics from Kerviel's neighbours to France's prime minister are questioning whether a single futures trader could have managed such large sums.

Adding to the mystery, the bank says Kerviel may not have made any personal gain from his unauthorized trades.

The bank says it discovered the fraud last weekend and unwound the trader's losing bets starting Monday, when world markets tumbled.

Some analysts have questioned whether Societe Generale exacerbated the fall and indirectly led to the U.S. Federal Reserve's subsequent decision to cut rates.