The Post Office will fight the first ever Capture case at the Court of Appeal, Sky News has learned.
Former sub-postmistress Pat Owen, who died in 2003, was convicted of stealing in 1998 based on evidence from the faulty Capture computer system.
Her case was referred to the Court of Appeal as a potential miscarriage of justice last year and the Post Office have now made the decision to oppose it.
A spokesperson said that “the case needs to be fully considered by the Court of Appeal.”
Capture, accounting software rolled out to up to 2,500 branches in the 1990s, was used just before the infamous Horizon system was introduced – which saw hundreds wrongfully convicted.
Mr Marston shows a disc with the faulty computer software called Capture
A government commissioned report in 2024 found that it was likely the Capture software caused accounting errors.
Mrs Owen’s Court of Appeal case had already been delayed in December after the Post Office asked for an extension to the deadline to respond to papers put forward by her defence team.
A new deadline of 30 January was set and shortly before it ended the family of Mrs Owen were told her case would be opposed.
The family, who have waited nearly three decades to appeal the case, have told Sky News they won’t be commenting pending legal advice.
The Post Office has said it wants all unsafe convictions overturned. Pic: iStock
Former sub-postmaster Steve Marston, a Capture user who was also convicted of stealing in 1998, said he feels as if the Post Office are showing “contempt” for postmasters that have had their “lives destroyed”.
He added that there was “overwhelming evidence that the Post office continued to intimidate and prosecute us even though they knew that the software was unfit for purpose”.
Mr Marston, who is also a leading campaigner for Capture victims, said that the Post Office were not “doing the decent thing” by opposing Mrs Owen’s case – and as a result not helping to “give justice to victims in a timely fashion”.
A Post Office spokesperson said: “This is the first Capture case to be referred by the CCRC [The Criminal Cases Review Commission] to the Court of Appeal.
“Post Office wants all unsafe convictions to be overturned, and we will continue to do everything we can to ensure that appeals are considered as swiftly as possible in accordance with the law and our duties to the Courts.
“We have been co-operating fully with the CCRC on this case and other convictions which may have involved evidence from Capture.
“We take our duty both to the Appellant, Mrs Owen’s family, and the Court seriously.
“The time taken to finalise our submission reflects a considered decision based on the reasoning and evidence referred by the CCRC and our duties to the Court of Appeal.
“The case needs to be fully considered by the Court of Appeal and our duty is to assist the Court with its deliberations.
“We remain open to reviewing our position should new evidence be presented.
“We will continue to supply all available documents and information to those with pre-Horizon convictions who wish to consider an appeal and would welcome guidance from the Court on how to approach future Capture cases.”
Read more from Sky News:
Epstein sent thousands to Mandelson’s husband
High hopes for Team GB at Winter Olympics
Last year, Sky News unearthed an expert report from 1998 showing the Capture software was faulty.
That report, commissioned by the solicitors acting for Mrs Owen in 1998, was served on the Post Office and may never have been seen by the jury in her case.
Meanwhile, a government redress scheme for Capture victims, who were not convicted, opened last year.
