Convicted Post Office Workers Have Names Cleared

A huge miscarriage of justice saw former postmasters accused of stealing money after branches installed the Horizon computer system. The 39 convicted post office workers have since had their names cleared.

Ex postmasters cheered as a judge threw out the case in court, because the computer system was flawed. Prime Minister Boris Johnson labelled the original convictions an “appalling injustice”.

More people have been affected by this ordeal than in any other miscarriage of justice in the UK. People’s lives have been ruined, and some were even imprisoned. They now want those responsible to be “punished”.

Convictions included theft, fraud and false accounting. These convictions resulted in people going to prison, being shunned by their communities and struggling to secure work. Some even lost their homes or failed to get insurance. Three of those convicted have since died.

Those affected always claimed that the fault lay in the computer system, which had been in use since 1999 to manage finances.

It Destroyed Everything

Among those convicted is Janet Skinner, who ran a post office in Hull. In 2007, she was imprisoned for nine months over a shortfall of £59,000. At the time she had no idea that other Post Office workers were also being prosecuted and convicted.

She says the case destroyed everything for her. She was taken away from her two children when she was sent to prison. But things didn’t get much better after her release, as she had a job offer taken away due to her criminal conviction.

Another worker, Harjinder Butoy, was convicted of theft and jailed for three years and four months in 2008. Speaking after his name was cleared, he described the Post Office as “a disgrace”. He calls those responsible “bullies”, and thinks they are the ones who should be charged.

Hughie “Noel” Thomas said he had fought for justice for 16 years and now wants his money back. It isn’t fair that the people responsible have just walked away.

Failed by the Post Office

The Post Office not only turned a blind eye to the failings in its hugely expensive IT system, but promoted a cover-up culture. All the organisation cared about was their own reputation and profit. They just accepted the loss of people’s life, liberty and sanity as a price worth paying.

The Post Office apparently knew there were serious issues about the reliability of Horizon. But they clearly chose to neglect their duty to investigate the system’s defects.

However the Post Office argue that “Horizon was robust and reliable”. They had the power to effectively steamroll over anybody who sought to challenge its accuracy.

Those affected want a full public inquiry, rather than the government’s own inquiry.

Although there may be jubilation over today’s result, there will be long lasting scars. The trauma, loss of reputation and years of financial hardship of those who were prosecuted will never leave them.

Based on Horizon evidence, there were more than 700 prosecutions. The Criminal Cases Review Commission is reviewing another 22 cases. They are the people responsible for investigating potential miscarriages of justice. Anyone else who believes their conviction to be unsafe is asked to come forward.

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