Post Office Limited (POL) “intended to pervert the course of justice” by counting on knowingly flawed money accounts, an inquiry submission filed at present alleged.
Sir Edward Henry KC, who represents former sub-postmasters Lee Castleton and Seema Misra, amongst others, within the Post Office scandal, made the remarks in a closing assertion for the Horizon inquiry.
Writing for the authorized agency Hodge Jones & Allen’s submission in Phase 4 of the inquiry, he accused Post Office attorneys and investigators of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice with Fujitsu employees within the litigation with Mr Castleton.
The former sub-postmaster owned a department in Marine Drive, Bridlington, east Yorkshire, and was bankrupted by a lawsuit towards the Post Office after a shortfall of £25,000 was flagged by his Horizon IT system.
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Sir Edward alleged that the Post Office’s reliance upon Mr Castleton’s money accounts throughout litigation towards him whereas “knowing there was expert evidence as to its unreliability, was a course of conduct which had a tendency to pervert the course of justice”.
He added: “It allowed POL to obtain judgment for a debt, and the consequent costs order, without producing reliable evidence that the debt was owed.”
The lawyer then mentioned: “There is evidence that this course of conduct was also maliciously intended to pervert the course of justice, because the POL group either knew that the Marine Drive cash accounts may not have been reliable, or they closed their eyes to that knowledge.
“The motive for the course of conduct could have been to guard POL, or their very own jobs, and the pure consequence of the course of conduct could not have been desired as such, however that doesn’t imply it was not meant.
“Mr Castleton’s destruction may have been seen as unfortunate collateral damage in order to protect Horizon at all cost.”
Castleton bankrupted by litigation
The lawyer made his remarks primarily based on proof from the litigation towards Alan Bates and Phase 1 of the Horizon Inquiry.
Within a yr of shopping for the Marine Drive department in 2003, Mr Castleton’s pc system confirmed a £25,000 shortfall.
He had known as the Post Office’s helpline 91 occasions as he believed the Horizon IT system was at fault, however was taken to court docket by the agency in 2007.
The former sub-postmaster needed to symbolize himself as he couldn’t afford a lawyer, and was ordered to repay the cash and pay prices of £321,000, which bankrupted him.
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Fujitsu ‘lacked data’ of Horizon use
Meanwhile, Fujitsu alleged of their closing remarks that they have been unaware of how the Post Office would use info from the Horizon methods towards sub-postmasters.
In web page 9 of their submission, the agency mentioned they settle for “that in some cases, although Fujitsu provided no particular support to a prosecution or civil claim… it is nonetheless clear that information derived from the Horizon system was instrumental to a number of the wrongful prosecutions and civil proceedings pursued against sub-postmasters”.
They then alleged “that, once support was provided by Fujitsu to Post Office in a particular case… Fujitsu lacked control, and typically lacked knowledge, as to how that evidence would be deployed by Post Office in that case, or in any subsequent cases”.
The latest remarks are at odds with Fujitsu’s European boss Paul Patterson’s assertion to the choose committee in January, the place he admitted employees knew of bugs, errors and defects within the Horizon IT system way back to 1999.
Mr Patterson additionally mentioned in an earlier committee look that the know-how big had a “moral obligation” to contribute to the compensation scheme for these whose lives have been ruined by the scandal.
Sky News has contacted the Post Office for remark.
Source: information.sky.com”