Few would deny that a French rogue trader who allegedly lost his employer Societe Generale $7.2 billion acted illegally. And yet, Jerome Kerviel is fast becoming an Internet hero, having been dubbed the Robin Hood of finance.

On one of the most prominent Facebook groups called “Jerome Kerviel should be awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics,” Blake Cromwell gave tribute to Kerviel for having taken on a major bank.

“You are the man,” Cromwell wrote. “The banks have a license to steal and deserved what they got. … Those political fat cats are not as smart as they thought they were. … Nice going Jerome!”

Although some are speculating that Kerviel is merely a scapegoat in a bank cover up, if he did indeed act alone, I don’t understand why so many people are making him into a modern-day Robin Hood. It’s not like he robbed the rich to help the poor–he just lost the money entirely. So why the outpouring of support?