'I do not own anything' - devastated former Grimsby sub-postmaster lost everything in Post Office scandal

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https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/news ... er-6882314

Public inquiry told of the devastation to David and Gillian Blakey when he was wrongly convicted of fraud and she was sacked

A Grimsby man has told of the devastation caused to him and his wife when The Post Office accused them of fraud.

A Public Inquiry has heard from some of the 38 post office sub-post masters and mistresses who were wrongly charged and convicted of stealing.The inquiry is being headed by retired High Court judge Sir Wyn Williams, who is ensuring there is a public summary of the failings which occurred with the Horizon IT system at the Post Office.

They led to suspension, termination of subpostmasters’ contracts, prosecution and conviction of subpostmasters. The system was used for 20 years before being found to be faulty.

David Blakey was not employed by the Post Office but he was responsible for the accounts at the Riby Square sub-post office. When the computer system showed shortfalls each month, he and wife Gillian paid up to £2,000 of their own money to make the balance up.

One day there was shortfall of £5,000, other days it was £100. But Post Office investigators pursued them and accused them of stealing money. The engineer was held responsible for a false account which had a £65,000 deficit.

At the time, investigators even questioned Mr Blakey over whether he had a mistress or a gambling addiction to account for the money. Investigators recorded the interview but did not include David's denials. He signed the transcript.

Gillian was sacked. David was taken to court by The Post Office in 2004 on theft charges which could have resulted in a jail term of between three to five years. But he was offered a lesser charge of false accounting if he pleaded guilty and was advised to do so by a Grimsby legal firm which represented him.

David, 68, who had worked all his life as a mechanical engineer for oil refineries, food factories and Kimberly Clark and was a volunteer reservist with the Parachute Regiment, told how he did not want any of the family at the sentencing hearing at Grimsby Crown Court. He said goodbye to them at home.

He received a nine-month prison sentence suspended for two years. "The fear of being locked up was horrendous. I could not face it," he told the inquiry.

In April last year the Court of Appeal quashed the conviction and those of dozens of other sub-post masters. David said he suffered a stroke due to the stress of the conviction and the impact on his family.

He told how, facing debt of £65,000 to the Post Office, they both declared themselves bankrupt. He lost his car and mortgage and they had to move into a rented home. David lost his job as an engineer because of the publicity over his conviction. The couple estimate to have lost £400,000 due to the faulty computer.

David told the inquiry he had feelings of low self-esteem and of worthlessness. He lost his passion for painting. After a while on benefits he got a job as a handyman on half the salary he had before and Gillian worked in an arcade and as a swimming instructor.

The inquiry was told of the toll it took on his relationships with other members of his family and friends at his golf club. David said he never buys stamps from the Post Office.

"Even though my innocence has been proven, I feel guilty about going through everything in the first place. I also feel guilty about the impact this has had on my family. One of the biggest things for me now is that I do not own anything," David said.

The Public Inquiry continues.