Criminal trials linked to Post Office Horizon scandal could wait until 2028
Criminal trials stemming from the Post Office Horizon scandal might not get underway until 2028, according to the police officer leading the investigation.
Commander Stephen Clayman said police are 'making some real progress' but warned it would take time as they widen the investigation from people 'involved in the immediate decision-making'.
He told the BBC: 'The teams need to be really meticulous and pay attention to detail.
'We are beginning to scope, looking at wider management. That will happen, and is happening, it will just take time to get there.'
The investigation, known as Operation Olympos, is focusing on potential crimes of perjury and perverting the court of justice, linked to the wrongful prosecutions of sub-postmasters and the wider presentation of the Horizon IT system.
Police have said the inquiry is 'unprecedented' in size, with potentially more than 3,000 victims and evidence currently including more than 1.5 million documents that have to be reviewed and forces across the UK involved.
No decision will be made over potential criminal charges until the public inquiry into the scandal has published its final report and investigators have 'thoroughly reviewed' its contents.
It is understood that dozens of people have been classed as persons of interest in the investigation. The investigation has identified seven suspects, according to the BBC.
Former sub-postmaster Tim Brentnall told the BBC victims were 'desperate to see some kind of accountability', but backed the need for police to 'do it properly'.
More than 900 sub-postmasters were prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 after faulty Horizon accounting software made it look as though money was missing from their accounts.
Hundreds are still awaiting compensation despite the previous government saying that those who have had convictions quashed are eligible for £600,000 payouts.
The scandal is one of the most widespread miscarriages of justice in British legal history.
A Post Office spokesperson said: 'Post Office has co-operated fully and openly with the Metropolitan Police since early 2020 to provide whatever information it needs for its investigations.'
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