[ad_1]
Angela van den Bogarde opened evidence at the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry in central London on Thursday and said she understood an apology “doesn’t change what happened”.
Ms Van den Bogarde, played by Coronation Street actress Catherine Kelly in the ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office, said her evidence would give the postmaster the answers he “deserves” at the inquiry. He said he hopes so.
She said: She said: “Saying I’m sorry doesn’t change what happened.
“But I want to say to everyone affected by wrongful convictions and wrongful terminations: I am truly, truly sorry for the devastation caused to you, your family and friends. It means that there is.
“I hope that my evidence will assist this investigation and help you and many others get the answers they deserve.”
Mr van den Bogaard has held a variety of positions during his 35-year career with the Post Office, starting as Network Change Operations Manager, then Director of Network Services, Director of Partnerships, Director of Support Services and Director of Human Resources and Change. Did. .
She was appointed the Post Office’s director of business improvement in 2018, but resigned from that role in 2020.
An error in the Post Office’s Horizon IT system caused many branch accounts to appear to be out of funds, when in fact they were not.
As a result, the government-owned organization prosecuted more than 700 postmasters convicted of crimes between 1999 and 2015.
The scandal represents one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in British legal history. Since then, the Court of Appeal has reversed the convictions of more than 100 of his subpostmasters.
Hundreds of postmasters are still waiting for compensation, despite the government announcing that postmasters whose convictions have been quashed will be eligible for a payout of £600,000.
[ad_2]
Source link
