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Lee Castleton, the subpostmaster whose bankruptcy over missing Post Office funds was featured in a recent television drama, Mr. Bates Vs The Post Office, was characterized as a "nasty chap" in an email by a Fujitsu manager. Peter Sewell, a Post Office Account Security Team member at Fujitsu, made these remarks about Lee Castleton in a 2006 email.
“That Castleton is a nasty chap and will be all out to rubbish the FJ (Fujitsu) name. It’s up to you to maintain absolute strength and integrity no matter what the prosecution throw at you."
The email was presented during the official public inquiry into the Horizon IT scandal. One of hundreds of sub-post managers prosecuted over allegations of stealing from the Post Office, Lee Castleton, like many others, faced legal action. However, it was later revealed that the missing money resulted from errors in the Horizon software developed by Fujitsu.
As reported by The Telegraph, Lee Castleton, aged 55, was held responsible for a £25,000 shortfall at his Yorkshire branch in 2004. Subsequently, three years later, he declared bankruptcy after the Post Office pursued his case in the High Court.
Who was Lee Castleton, and how did he go bankrupt?
Lee Castleton is a former sub-postmaster who faced financial ruin after a two-year legal battle with the Post Office. He is among the victims of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, considered one of the most widespread miscarriages of justice in UK history. Castleton acquired a post office in Bridlington, East Yorkshire, in 2003.
According to BBC, within a year, significant discrepancies emerged in his branch accounts, and suspecting the Horizon computer system, he made 91 calls to the helpline seeking assistance. By March 2004, the unexplained losses had reached £25,000. Following an audit that same month, he was suspended and instructed to repay the money, a demand he refused.
Subsequently, the Post Office took him to the High Court, where he had to represent himself. Upon losing the case, the Post Office pursued him for legal costs amounting to £321,000, leading to his bankruptcy. Castleton's story is emblematic of the injustices suffered by many sub-postmasters in the wake of the Horizon IT scandal.
The email was sent to an IT analyst named Andy Dunks by Mr. Sewell, who was set to present Horizon evidence in the Castleton case. The email termed Lee a "nasty chap."
Dunks replied,
“Thank you for those very kind and encouraging words. I had to pause halfway through reading it to wipe away a small tear.”
In an email exchange dated December 2006, just before Mr. Lee Castleton's legal proceedings, Mr. Sewell described Fetters Lane, the road where the court was located, as a place "they used to hang people out to dry."
In September 2023, Lee Castleton sought answers regarding the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, nearly two decades after the Post Office bankrupted him. The public inquiry into the scandal resumed during that week, focusing specifically on Castleton's case. He said,
"something I'd never ever dreamed that we'd see."
Lee Castleton remains hopeful that the inquiry will illuminate what went wrong in his case and those of others affected by the Horizon IT scandal. According to the Sky News, Lee Castleton said,
"I think I had pretty bad treatment all round from the Post Office. I've never even spoken to anybody from Fujitsu."
When Lee Castleton was asked about the behavior he received from My Sewell. he said to Sky News,
"I don't even know his name, I've never spoken to him, never written to him, nothing, no contact whatsoever... It shows exactly the treatment, every single (sub-postmaster) got, and it probably continues to this day."
Mr. Sewell informed the inquiry that he couldn't recall writing the email and expressed uncertainty about the reasons behind its creation. Mr. Sewell said surprise when confronted with his own words, stating to Julian Blake, counsel for the inquiry,
"I don't remember writing it, but obviously I did. But I certainly don't understand it."
Under questioning by the inquiry lawyers about whether it would be unfair to describe him as someone who considered protecting Fujitsu important, Mr. Sewell admitted, "We all protect our own companies, yes."
Upon hearing the evidence, Lee Castleton told BBC,
"They set out to ruin me, which they did, and it was groupthink - it wasn't just one person. It was a group of people and it's a case of 'sorry, not sorry' isn't it?"
Lee wanted to spread the message to his opponent, Mr Sewells,
"I hope you have as many sleepless nights as I have."
In the meantime, Fujitsu announced that it will cease bidding for Government contracts during the ongoing inquiry into the Post Office scandal. In a letter sent to ministers on Thursday, the Japanese giant stated that it is "voluntarily" opting not to participate in Government contract bids unless specifically requested while the inquiry is in progress.
Actor Will Mellor portrayed Mr. Lee Castleton in the ITV drama Mr. Bates Vs. The Post Office, bringing increased attention to the inquiry and shedding light on the injustices experienced by hundreds of sub-post managers. The legal drama series is streaming on the ITV network.
