‘A slap in the face’: No prosecution over Post Office Horizon scandal until at least 2027
11 December 2024, 16:00 | Updated: 11 December 2024, 16:03
Police have warned that it could be another two years before anyone appears in court over potential criminal acts linked to the Post Office Horizon IT scandal.
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Some 100 officers are investigating possible crimes committed by people involved in the wrongful prosecution of more than 900 sub-postmasters.
Operation Olympos is being led by teams across the UK and has been described as “unprecedented in size” with thousands of potential victims and more than 1.5 million documents which have to be reviewed.
Commander Stephen Clayman said: "The sub-postmasters and their families are at the heart of this investigation and our goal is to try and secure justice for those affected by this shocking set of events, the impact of which cannot be underestimated.
"I do know that if you take into account Post Office criminal and private prosecutions, civil claims and contract withdrawals, there are potentially thousands of victims who we are working hard to identify and build our database so that we can ensure we reach as many affected individuals as possible.
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"I cannot make promises that this will be a fast process. An investigation of this size must continue to be undertaken meticulously and methodically and will take time.”
The team is investigating dozens of people with links to Fujitsu and the Post Office, as well as in the legal profession, but says no charging decisions will be made until the final report of the public inquiry is published.
Speaking to LBC, James, now Lord Arbuthnot said: “This seems a dreadful slap in the face for the subpostmasters, it seems to me to be further justice delayed.”
As a former MP, he started the parliamentary campaign to help subpostmasters in their fight for justice and was portrayed by Alex Jennings in the ITV drama ‘Mr Bates vs The Post Office’.
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“Given the amount of delay the subpostmasters have already had to suffer, I understand the police have a lot of work to do but we’ve learned so much from the public inquiry that it’s a great pity that it can’t get ahead any quicker.
“I think there will be prosecutions and from the evidence I’ve seen in the public inquiry I think there will be convictions.
“I am optimistic that eventually justice will be done. It’s just taking too long.”
Closing statements will be heard in the public inquiry on December 16 and 17, but no firm timetable has yet been set for its final report.
Last month the Met said four suspects had so far been identified in the investigation, and that the number was expected to rise.
Three have been interviewed under caution so far since 2021.
Jerry Brown, Postmaster at Hadleigh branch in Suffolk, told LBC he’d rather charges came late than not at all.
“It’s disappointing that it is going to take another two years or so, but I’m far more interested in them being able to make the right decisions for the prosecutions rather than do it without all the evidence there and run the risk of not achieving the right outcome for postmasters.
“I’d much prefer to wait and ensure all the evidence is there in order to bring strong prosecutions.
“Having watched the inquiry and the evidence, I think it’s quite obvious to most people - whether you’re a postmaster or not - that many of the witnesses were holding back and had very selective memories about what happened at the time.
“I think we can all draw our own conclusions from that.”
More than 900 sub postmasters were prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 after faulty Horizon accounting software made it look as though money was missing from their accounts.
Hundreds are still awaiting compensation despite the previous government saying that those who have had convictions quashed are eligible for £600,000 payouts.
The scandal is one of the most widespread miscarriages of justice in British legal history.
A portal has been set up where people with information can send details and documents to investigators.
