‘Second Post Office scandal’ to be investigated by US IT experts

The Government has appointed independent investigators to look into claims of a second IT scandal at the Post Office that pre-dates Horizon in a major breakthrough for alleged victims, i can reveal.

In a precursor to the Horizon scandal, sub-postmasters claim they were sacked, forced to hand over money and in some cases criminally prosecuted as a result of faults with Capture, a piece of software rolled out in the 90s.

Capture was developed in-house by the Post Office IT team in Farnborough, Hampshire, and documents shared with i suggest both managers and Post Office lawyers were well aware it was prone to bugs and glitches.

Now the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has confirmed it has appointed Kroll, an independent finance and advisory firm based in New York, to carry out an investigation into the allegations.

In a letter to alleged victims, Carl Cresswell, director in the DBT responsible for Post Office policy, said: “Their role will be to assess whether the design, implementation, and use of the Capture software package by postmasters could have resulted in those postmasters suffering detriment and/or there were issues with the way Post Office investigated any issues associated with Capture.

“Kroll has extensive experience in this field of investigations, and we are confident they will deliver a detailed report on the basis of the information available.”

It follows months of reporting by i on claims that Capture was faulty and caused sub-postmasters to experience accounting shortfalls in cases that bear a stark resemblance to those suffered as part of the Horizon IT scandal, now subject to a public inquiry.

Steve Marston, 68, was bankrupted and said he was forced to flee his home in shame after being convicted of theft and false accounting offences in 1998.

Post Office auditors claimed £79,000 was missing from his branch in Heap Bridge, Greater Manchester, but Mr Marston insists he never stole “a penny”.

He told i his accounting problems began when the Post Office installed the Capture computer system and he would find money missing from his weekly balance without explanation.

Mr Marston says when he raised the issue with Post Office investigators he was told ‘Capture doesn’t make mistakes’ and that pleading guilty to criminal offences was the only way to avoid a prison sentence.

Dozens of other sub-postmasters who worked for the business in the 90s have come forward with the similar stories.

The Capture software was rolled out to Post Office branches starting in 1992 (Photo: Supplied)

The appointment of an independent investigator, in a major step forward from the Government, was welcomed by Mr Marston, who described it as a “very big moment”.

“Everybody is over the moon, it’s great news,” he said. “They said they wanted to have an independent examination of the software and they’ve followed through with it.

“Post Office investigators overstepped the boundaries and started treating people as if they were criminals from day one – they never questioned whether it could be the software they just assumed it was the postmasters.”

The Post Office has said it is taking claims about Capture “very seriously” and that it is “concerned” about allegations of wrongful prosecutions.

However, senior staff have indicated to campaigners that they are struggling to find any records relating to action taken against sub-postmasters before 1999.

There are believed to be at least 36 former sub-postmasters or families to have come forward with allegations to date.

There has been no indication of how long the Kroll investigation will take.

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Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake has said he does not believe alleged Capture victims can be included in legislation currently before Parliament which will exonerate around 800 sub-postmasters who used the Horizon system.

The possibility has been further ruled out by the announcement of a general election which will mean important legislation such as the Horizon Offences Bill must be pushed through at speed before 4 July.

“Capture was introduced into Post Offices over 30 years ago and it is vital that those impacted and their families get answers quickly.

“I would encourage anybody who has a story to share, about themselves or somebody they know, who may have suffered a detriment as a result of using Capture in a Post Office to contact Kroll to share their story.”

A DBT spokesperson said: “We have appointed financial and risk advisory firm, Kroll Associates, to assess if the design, implementation and use of the Post Office Capture system could have resulted in postmasters suffering any detriment and whether Post Office properly investigated any issues associated with the system.

“Kroll will soon begin their investigation and report back in due course.”

The Post Office declined to add any further comment. Kroll has been contacted for comment.