Postmaster's widow said wrongly-convicted husband could have been 14th suicide

Daily Record

3 days ago

Anne Quarm, from North Uist, shared husband William's torment after a bombshell public inquiry report revealed the Horizon scandal could be to blame for 13 people taking their own lives.
The widow of a wrongly-convicted Scots postmaster who died before seeing justice said he could have been the Post Office's 14th suicide yesterday.
Anne Quarm, from North Uist, spoke of husband William's torment after a bombshell public inquiry report revealed the Horizon IT scandal could be to blame for at least 13 people taking their own lives.
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Sir Wyn Williams' first report laid bare the 'disturbing' toll of false accusations against at least 1,000 postmasters as a result of the faulty software - saying a further 59 victims had considered suicide.
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Anne, who successfully fought to overturn William's conviction after his death in 2015, said the dad-of-five was amongst those who had 'contemplated' taking their own life after he faced the threat of jail over false embezzlement charges.
She said: 'There were many more potentials, including my husband. My brother stopped him from doing it.
'That is so painful. Although William knew he was innocent he believed that people thought he was guilty.
'To know that on your death bed is bad enough, but carrying it with you - that's so tough.'
More than 700 sub-postmasters were prosecuted, including up to 100 in Scotland, for theft and false accounting from 2000-14 as a result of shortfalls flagged by the faulty Horizon system.
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William Quarm was convicted in 2010 of embezzling cash from the Paible Post Office and ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work. He died a 'broken man' two years later aged 69.
But he was completely exonerated by a court in 2023 after a long fight by his loved ones.
The public inquiry heard last year that William had reported a suspected error with the ATM at his branch when an audit found missing cash.
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He could not explain the mystery £40,000 shortfall that would destroy his life - explaining he had moved around money within the business to account for it while he awaited a bank loan to plug the loss from his own pocket.
The inquiry heard an investigator admit that no Horizon data had been requested from software developer Fujitsu in relation to William's case and there was no identification of when Post Office money had benefited William's own personal accounts.
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Despite this, he was forced to plead guilty after being warned he could go to prison following trial.
Anne said the proud grandfather 'lost everything' as a result.
Inquiry chairman Williams stated on Tuesday that he is satisfied that employees of the Post Office and Fujitsu knew that Horizon was capable of producing 'illusory' errors in accounts.
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He stated there was 'wholly unacceptable behaviour' perpetrated by a number of individuals, while a number of employees at the Post Office 'maintained the fiction' that Horizon's data was 'always accurate'.
He will address this in the later part of his report.
Anne said she hopes she will live to see justice served.
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She said: 'They were making money all the time. To them it was a game of Monopoly. They were there to squeeze as much out of people as they possibly could. They were torturing people to the core. It's unreal a human could do such a thing to another.
'I'll be 74 soon. I just hope in my lifetime I see justice.
'They took innocent people's lives from them and destroyed their families. We want justice for that. We need justice for that to give us some sort of peace.
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'Everybody involved who knew they were doing wrong should all be accountable.
'It has to start from the top. Those who knew full well and allowed it to come down the ladder like a snake.
'These people have no idea what life is like to be stripped naked of your dignity, all your possessions and everything you've loved.
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'My blood runs cold when I hear 'the Post Office'. It's just been so traumatic and it's hard to live with it.
'There will never be justice until these people are held accountable.'
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Police have identified seven suspects, and has 45 to 50 potential suspects in view in relation to the scandal but has said criminal trials may not start until 2028.
Williams made 19 recommendations, largely relating to expediting victim compensation, in his first report.
Post Office Chair Nigel Railton, said he wanted to make a 'clear and unequivocal apology to every single person affected' by the scandal.
He said: 'Post Office did not listen to postmasters and, as an organisation, we let them down.'
A spokesperson from Fujitsu Services Ltd said: 'We have apologised for, and deeply regret, our role in sub-postmasters' suffering, and we wish to reiterate that apology today.'