A second faulty Post Office IT system may have led to sub-postmasters being wrongly convicted of criminal offences, a government report has confirmed.
Capture, an early piece of accounting software developed in-house by the Post Office, was rolled out in the 1990s to thousands of branches.
A damning government-commissioned report published today concludes that there is a “reasonable likelihood” that Capture would have caused sub-postmasters to suffer financial shortfalls which could have led to wrongful prosecutions.
Sub-postmasters claim they suffered unexplained shortfalls when trying to balance the books and were then held responsible by Post Office investigators, in an apparent pre-cursor to the Horizon scandal.
i first revealed earlier this year how Capture victims were forced to hand over money, sacked, and in some cases criminally prosecuted.
In response to i‘s reporting, the Government commissioned US firm Kroll to carry out an independent investigation into the claims about Capture and staff have spent several months interviewing alleged victims, Post Office staff and gathering evidence.
Kroll said it found “no evidence” that Post Office’s auditors, investigators or its legal team took into account known bugs identified in various versions of the Capture system.
The Government says it will now need time to consider and review the Kroll report before deciding its next steps. An update is expected in December.
Post Office minister Gareth Thomas met with sub-postmasters, relatives and their legal teams in London today to discuss the findings.
Speaking after the meeting, he said: “I was horrified to learn about the issues with the Capture system, which pre-dates Horizon. I would like to thank affected postmasters, individuals that have worked with postmasters and parliamentarians for bringing this to light.
“Today, I met with some of the postmasters who used the Capture system, and I thank them for their honesty and bravery in coming forward to talk about the impact it had on their lives and livelihoods.
“The independent report from Kroll Associates, published today, sheds further light on how the faults with the Capture system may have impacted the operation of post offices who used it.
“Once postmasters and others have had time to digest the report, I look forward to hearing their views. In parallel I will work closely with colleagues across government to thoroughly examine Kroll’s report and consider what action should be taken. We will work quickly and plan to set out next steps in December.”
The first Horizon prosecutions began in 1999 and continued until 2015 – though all convictions have now been overturned after the government brought in emergency legislation in the wake of public anger sparked by the ITV drama ‘Mr Bates vs the Post Office’.
However, i revealed over the weekend that the sudden spike in private prosecutions carried out by the Post Office first began in 1996.
A Freedom of Information request shows there were more than 200 Post Office prosecutions between 1992 to 1998.
The FOI data means that, for the first time, the true scale of prosecutions which coincided with the introduction of Capture can be set out.
Victims hope the Kroll report will speed up the process of attempting to have convictions overturned, some of which date back more than 30 years.
Steve Marston, 68, told i how he was convicted of criminal offences of theft and false accounting in 1998 despite never having stolen “a penny” from his branch in Heap Bridge, Greater Manchester.
He says he was pressured into pleading guilty by Post Office investigators as the only way to avoid a prison sentence, a tactic which was widely used in Horizon prosecutions.
Other sub-postmasters came forward with similar stories of being sacked or handing over money to the Post Office due to shortfalls they believe were caused by Capture.
Kevan Jones, the former Labour MP who now sits in the House of Lords, has described Capture as a “second scandal” at the Post Office and questioned why bosses did not come forward about such cases much earlier.
Former chief executive of the Post Office Nick Read told MPs his team was investigating Capture earlier this year and admitted that there may be new claims of compensation.
Anyone with queries relating to Capture is asked to contact [email protected]
Timeline of Post Office scandal and Capture IT allegations
1992: Capture IT first rolled out in branches, with the Post Office promising it will “simplify the task of keeping accounts”.
1995: Staff bulletins sent out to sub-postmasters, revealing bosses admitting Capture IT was experiencing a number of faults. One document from Focus – an in-house magazine produced by the Post Office – lists “a few hiccups” with the software processing pensions, currency and automated transactions.
1996: Spike in private prosecutions by the Post Office begins, with 31 in total.
1997: Number of prosecutions rises to 60.
1998: One year before the Horizon IT system is introduced – 93 people are prosecuted. Former sub-postmaster Steve Marston, 67, is prosecuted by the Post Office for theft and false accounting offences.
1999: Liz Roberts is convicted of theft offences, which her family believes were wrongly based on data from the Capture system. She is sentenced to 13 months in prison. Horizon IT system rolled out in Post Office branches across the UK.
2000: Alan Bates reports issues with the new Horizon IT system, which has replaced Capture.
2004: Lee Castleton is found to have a £25,000 shortfall at his branch. He is made bankrupt after he loses his legal battle with the Post Office.
2010: Pregnant sub-postmaster Seema Misra jailed after being accused of stealing £74,000.
2015: Post Office boss Paula Vennells tells MPs on the Business Select Committee there is no evidence of miscarriages of justice.
2017: Legal action launched against the Post Office by a group of 555 sub-postmasters.
2019: A High Court judge rules Horizon contained a number of “bugs, errors and defects” and there was a “material risk” that shortfalls in Post Office branch accounts were caused by the system. The Post Office agrees to pay out £58m to the 555 sub-postmasters. Ms Vennells is appointed a CBE.
2021: Statutory inquiry looking into the failings of Horizon and the wrongful convictions of sub-postmasters begins. Court of Appeal quashes 39 wrongful Crown Court convictions.
2023: Government announces that every wrongly convicted sub-postmaster will be offered £600,000 in compensation.
2024: ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office airs for the first time. Parliament passes law overturning the convictions of sub-postmasters in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scotland passes similar law the same month. Criminal investigations are launched into the Horizon IT scandal. King Charles III revokes Ms Vennells’s CBE. i reveals the potential second IT scandal linked to Capture.
By Caolan Magee
