A most curious saga began last October when an e-mail was sent to Irish newspapers, telling an exciting tale of audacious entrepreneurship involving an unknown young businessman. It said that 25-year-old Stuart Pearson of Kilkenny was thinking of bidding hundreds of millions to buy a property company that was in deep financial trouble. This was big news in a country hit particularly hard by the global financial crisis.

The papers carried the news, and in the weeks that followed there were more stories of Pearson negotiating multimillion-euro deals in defiance of the credit crunch. But now things are not so clear-cut – and the question is being posed: is Stuart Pearson really worth a fortune? Or is he simply a guy who runs a sweet shop in rural Ireland who allowed his imagination to run riot?

Pearson has certainly managed to get much of the Irish media to take him at face value, portraying him as a genuine multimillionaire intent on expanding an already substantial financial empire.

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Papers first of heard of Pearson via an e-mail from an anonymous source which, according to Laura Keys, a reporter on the Kilkenny People, tipped them off about a young businessman on the verge of a multimillion euro deal. When contacted, Pearson himself confirmed the story to all and sundry.

He told one newspaper, "speaking exclusively", that the deal would be worth between €350m (£307m) and €450m. "We're hoping to launch a takeover, but we'd prefer to take the whole company rather than just parts of it," he said.

As soon as one paper ran the story, others followed. One weekly showcased him as: "A young Kilkenny businessman who inherited a fortune several years ago has launched a multimillion-euro bid to take over one of Ireland's largest private building companies."

Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia which can be altered by anyone, also appeared to confirm the story. "According to interviews, Pearson inherited money from relatives' land in 2003. This was held by trustees till 2008, who invested it in property – mostly commercial – in Ireland and Britain," his entry reads. It goes on to cite reports that Pearson has a "war chest" of up to €2bn, having profited from retail property deals in London worth almost £1bn and a New York investment which yielded up to €800m.

Other reports described his apparently fabulous lifestyle: "He keeps a full stables at his home in County Kilkenny. Hunting is his main passion, although he also keeps several racehorses. Pearson is also a collector of vintage Jaguar cars, while he drives a sovereign four-litre special edition himself. Flying is also an interest, and he uses a Robinson helicopter for work."

But all this has come as a huge surprise to Stuart Pearson's neighbours in the quiet village of Goresbridge, where he is known not as an international high-flyer but as the guy who runs a sweet-shop in nearby Graiguenamanagh.

If he is a tycoon, he has not given up the day job. The sweet shop is not part of his sprawling property empire, since he rents rather than owns it. It is believed his home, a modest bungalow, is also rented. An Irish Times reporter who visited the village found no trace of "the full stables". Nor was there a collection of vintage Jaguars: there was just one, described as "elderly and much-repaired". Bemused locals say they remain untroubled by helicopter noise.

The sweet shop sells newspapers, including some of those which have chronicled Pearson's exploits. An employee serving there said Pearson had not been seen for a few days and was with his wife, who was "sick". However, his wife Sarah, when visited, said she was separated from her husband, did not know where he is, and knows nothing about his reported business deals.

Pearson is a regular at a local take-away, where staff described him as a nice man. They said his favourite dishes are the "quarter-pounder meal deal" and the chicken curry, both of which cost less than €7.

Laura Keys said yesterday: "We had our doubts about it – right from the start there were things that didn't really make sense. In the beginning I suppose I was inclined to believe him to a degree, but his story has changed so many times. I think he's a bit of a grandstander – he seems to have some reason for wanting all this attention. He took everyone in."

Another local newspaperman was more blunt: "Pearson is a Walter Mitty, complete Walter Mitty," he said dismissively. "He hasn't two cents to his name."

Pearson has made a point, in the course of his (reportedly) rapid financial rise, of making himself readily available to newspapers for interviews. Yesterday however he was not available to discuss his fortune. Attempts to contact him were unsuccessful, both his phone lines carrying the message: "You have dialled an incorrect number."