Post Office Seeks Delay in Second Capture Scandal Court Appeal

The Post Office is seeking to delay the second Capture scandal case at the Court of Appeal, Sky News has learned.

Steve Marston was convicted in 1998 of stealing from his branch after using the faulty accounting software called Capture. Capture predated the infamous Horizon IT system, which saw hundreds wrongfully convicted of theft in one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in British legal history.

Mr Marston's conviction was referred by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) to the Court of Appeal on the grounds that his prosecution amounted to an "abuse of process". The Post Office is now requesting a two-month extension before it delivers its formal response to the case.

Last year, a Sky News investigation unearthed a long-lost document which proved that the Capture system was capable of producing "absurd gibberish". That document is being used in Mr Marston's appeal, as well as being part of the first Capture case to be referred to the Court of Appeal - Pat Owen, who died a few years after her conviction in 1998.

Ms Owen's case was also delayed by the Post Office before Christmas last year when they applied for an extension.

Speaking to Sky News, Steve Marston said that he believed the Post Office is "determined to protect their brand at all costs despite the overwhelming proof" over faulty Capture software.

He continued: "They appear to be looking for straws in a haystack to try and discredit innocent victims rather than doing the right thing by not contesting… and accept their part in this scandal rather than trying to find a technicality to try and continue blaming postmasters."

"Shame on them," he added.

The government has already accepted that the Capture system was faulty, and has started paying redress to victims who were not convicted.

A Post Office spokesperson said they "acknowledge" that Mr Marston "feels frustrated" by the application and "regret the distress" caused. They emphasised that the Post Office "wants all unsafe convictions to be overturned" and added that they will "continue to do everything we can to ensure that appeals are considered in accordance with the law and our duties to the courts."

The spokesperson also told Sky News that they need "to conduct further searches, informed by the additional information that has now been provided by the Appellant and the CCRC".

"It was acknowledged by the CCRC in their Statement of Reasons, that the referral to the Court of Appeal has been made without the benefit of access to the full case papers and evidence.

"We are working to file our Respondents Notice by the proposed new deadline."