Clacks postmaster turns out £600k compensation and pledges to fight for victims

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A wrongly-convicted postmaster has turned down £600,000 compensation and vowed to fight for millions for victims.Robert Thomson, 64, was driven to the brink of suicide when he was forced to plead guilty to avoid jail over cash shortfalls identified at his Cambus Post Office near Alva, Clackmannanshire, in 2006.The dad-of-two then faced a 20-year fight to clear his name before his conviction was finally quashed last month.His wrongful conviction means he is entitled to the upfront settlement from the UK Government, but he says victims dragged through courts should see seven figures.Robert said: “I’ve told them already I’m not interested in their figure.

I’ve knocked back the £600,000. It’s a drop in the ocean and a kick in the backside.“It’s not about the money. But I’ve been fighting this for 20 years and the way I’ve been treated by the Post Office is beyond a joke.“I’m still waiting for a personal apology.”More than 700 people were prosecuted for theft and false accounting between 2000 and 2014 after the Post Office’s flawed Fujitsu IT system incorrectly flagged cash shortfalls.In Scotland, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service was solely responsible for Horizon prosecutions but in England the Post Office itself prosecuted cases.The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission, which investigates miscarriages of justice, wrote to more than 70 potential victims of the scandal in Scotland in 2020.The Post Office launched criminal proceedings against Robert after auditors identified an alleged shortfall of around £5700.The grandfather of four, who took over the post office from his mum in the early 2000s, had already reported shortfalls of about £60,000.When his lawyer warned he was facing prison he was forced to