The sub-postmaster, who believes he has been wrongly convicted as a result of the Capture system, says he is optimistic about the independent investigation underway and is confident the report will contain evidence that there were glitches.
An investigation into the accounting software the post office used before its controversial Horizon system has begun contacting subpostmasters and is expected to report its findings in the fall, it has been announced.
Kroll, a risk consultancy and financial solutions company, was commissioned to carry out an independent forensic investigation system called Capture which was used in the 1990s before Horizon was introduced to post offices.
A number of former subpostmasters and mistresses have raised concerns that there were similar flaws in the Capture system to the Horizon software that led to the wrongful conviction of hundreds of people who worked in the branches.
The news was welcomed by former sub-postmaster and Capture user Steve Marston, who believes he was wrongly convicted of theft and false accounting.
“I certainly feel very optimistic,” Mr Marston told Sky News.
Data from Horizon was used to prosecute more than 700 sub-postmasters, forcing many more to repay alleged shortfalls in branches across the UK, experiencing significant hardship in the process.
A separate independent statutory public inquiry is underway into the implementation and shortcomings of Horizon at the post office.
The government agreed to carry out an independent IT expert review of the post office’s software system before Horizon.
What’s happening
On Tuesday, subpostmasters who say they were wrong convicted of Capture errors they were written with the news that Kroll had been commissioned by the Department of Trade and Commerce to conduct a forensic investigation.
The work will “assess whether the design, implementation and use of the Post Office Capture system may have resulted in any harm to postmasters,” Kroll said.
It will also check that the Post Office has properly investigated the problems associated with the system.
Read more:
The compensation system could be changed by a European decision
Mail hero ‘was asked to open Glastonbury’
The fact that the Post Office will not be involved was also welcomed by Mr Marston.
“They have absolutely no connection to the post office in the sense that they can’t influence what’s being said, which is very important in what’s going to happen,” he said.
The inquiry was first announced in April after Post Office Minister Kevin Hollinrake met with a former sub-postmaster and a lawyer representing 35 people who believe they have been wrongly accused of theft.
They agreed to have an independent IT expert review the evidence they say “proves” the Capture software is prone to bugs.
Kroll also said he is collecting information about Capture from postmasters that may be relevant to the investigation.
“A long time is coming”
Although Kroll didn’t give a more precise timeline than “the fall,” Mr. Marston said he was more than happy to wait.
“It’s been a long time coming,” he said. “I mean it goes back to the nineties.
“We only started this process in mid-January … it’s come a long, long way.”
The process should not take as long as the Horizon inquiry – which began in September 2020 – because Capture was a small, streamlined programme, Mr Marston said.
It was a stand-alone system and did not involve the complex networking of Horizon itself.
What’s next
Mr Marston said he was confident the report would contain evidence that would allow the captivity conviction to be reconsidered.
However, he is worried about the post-election government and the determination to solve Capture’s problems.
“We are aware of the fact that there is an election coming up. And of course it is a concern… if there is a change of government, will the incoming government keep what we promised?”