More bid to clear names in Horizon scandal

More former subpostmasters convicted of offences relating to the Post Office Horizon scandal have launched bids to clear their names in the wake of last week’s historic Court of Appeal ruling.

On Friday, 39 former subpostmasters who were convicted and even jailed for theft, fraud and false accounting had their names cleared – some after fighting for nearly 20 years.

At a hearing last month, the court heard subpostmasters’ lives were “irreparably ruined” as they lost their jobs, homes and marriages after they were prosecuted by the Post Office – which knew the Fujitsudeveloped IT system had “faults and bugs from the earliest days of its operation”.

Hundreds of people who ran Post Office branches were convicted of various offences during the period of time the system was being used.

Lawyers representing other subpostmasters said yesterday they have more than 70 other appeals or potential appeals at various stages of the legal process.

Solicitor Neil Hudgell, of Hudgell Solicitors, who has represented 33 former subpostmasters who have cleared their names so far, said his firm received 20 new inquiries over the weekend following media reports of the Court of Appeal decision.

He said that his firm plans to launch claims for compensation against the Post Office for malicious prosecution later this week and said that “very significant sums” will be sought on behalf of his clients.

There are also 38 people who were convicted in the Crown Court, who filed their cases with the Court of Appeal last week.