Mr Bates Vs The Post Office: Where the victims are now including Alan Bates and Jo Hamilton
04.01.2024 - 20:15
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Viewers have so far been gripped with new ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, which follows the story of the Post Office Scandal and the impact it has has on the real lives of those affected by it. The miscarriage of justice saw those wrongly accused endure immense suffering.
Alongside those who went bankrupt and the pregnant mum facing jail, there are the four people who died by suicide and the 33 others no longer here and so will never see justice. The scandal goes back to 1999, when the Post Office rolled out a new computer accounting system Horizon, put in place to improve efficiency.
But software glitches led to false financial discrepancies. This resulted in hundreds of innocent postmasters being accused of theft, false accounting, and fraud, the Mirror reports.
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Over 700 sub-postmasters were prosecuted based on information provided by Horizon. This resulted lives being destroyed by financial ruin. While some faced prison time, others were forced to deal with their reputation being dragged through the mud.
The Mirror has taken a look at how the lives of ordinary working men and women have been impacted, with the devastating affects still felt as strong as ever, today.
Former sub-postmaster Alan Bates, played in the drama by Toby Jones, and partner Suzanne (Julie Hesmondhalgh) opened their own shop with a post office counter in Llandudno in 1999. Alan first became aware of issues with Horizon when his books showed a shortage of £6,000, with multiple duplicated transactions pointing toward a serious error.
The Post Office ended up terminating Alan's contract regardless in 2003, claiming that £1,200 was still
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