First six postmasters get their Horizon convictions quashed

Six former postmasters were formally acquitted following a referral by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) in cases related to the Horizon IT scandal at Post Office.

Post Office, as announced in October, didn’t contest the appeals of Julie Cleife, Christopher Trousdale, Susan Rudkin, Vipinchandra Patel, Kamran Ashraf and Jasvinder Barang at Southwark Crown Court on 11 December.

They were prosecuted by Post Office between 2003-2013 for false accounting, fraud and false representation at magistrate’s courts.

“The past nine years have been hellish and a total nightmare, but today I feel I can start living again. I can look forward and focus on enjoying life,” Vipinchandra Patel, who has been sentenced to 18 weeks in prison in June 2011, told BBC.

“I feel euphoric as I have finally been vindicated. This conviction has been a cloud over my life for almost 10 years.”

The CCRC has earlier this year decided to refer the convictions of 47 postmasters for appeal following the High Court verdict on the Horizon IT system used by the Post Office, which went in favour of postmasters.

Post Office decided to not oppose 44 of these appeals. It contests the CCRC referral in three cases.

Commenting on the overturned convictions, a Post Office spokesman said it did not oppose these appeals and “sincerely apologises for historical failings”.

“We have taken determined action to address the past, ensuring there is redress for those affected and to prevent such events ever happening again. Fundamental reforms have been made to forge a new relationship with postmasters, helping them to build thriving Post Office businesses for customers and communities throughout the UK,” the spokesman added.

Post Office has taken several measures to ‘reset its relationship’ with postmasters following the settlement of long-running Horizon trial in December 2019.

These included the creation of new non-executive director position in its board for a serving postmaster, a scheme for current and former sub-postmasters to claim shortfalls related to previous versions of the scandal-hit computer system Horizon.