London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Jul 06, 2025

‘They ripped the life out of me’: ex-Post Office staff tell inquiry of stress of IT scandal

‘They ripped the life out of me’: ex-Post Office staff tell inquiry of stress of IT scandal

Former workers say they suffered depression and PTSD after being accused of financial wrongdoing

Former Post Office workers have broken down in tears recounting the depression and PTSD they suffered after being caught up in the organisation’s IT scandal.

More than 700 Post Office operators were prosecuted for theft and false accounting between 2000 and 2014 after the organisation’s flawed Horizon IT system incorrectly suggested there were financial shortfalls.

On Friday, former worker Jennifer O’Dell said she had considered killing herself and suffered from recurring night terrors. She was accused of stealing almost £10,000 from a post office in Cambridgeshire.

Speaking at the end of the first week of the independent inquiry into the scandal, O’Dell said she had researched how to take her own life, as well as suffering from depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

She said: “I went to some very dark places, extremely dark places. I even worked out how to commit suicide. I had to have anti-depressants. I had to have sleeping pills. I had night terrors where my husband had to wake me up. And it wasn’t just once every so often, it was two or three times a week. I had high blood pressure as well.

“After the court case in December, I suffered from PTSD and had to have counselling. That was awful. I hadn’t been at war. I hadn’t lost a limb. They caused that.”

O’Dell was suspended and, although not prosecuted, she said months of uncertainty left her expecting to “wake up to a court summons”.

She said: “I want those people brought to justice. I want them to be persecuted and that’s not at all like me. I want them to say: ‘Yes, we did it, we didn’t tell the truth on oath.’ I want them to say sorry.”

The inquiry also heard a written statement on behalf of Guy Vinall, who ran a post office in Funtington, near Chichester in West Sussex. He was threatened with prosecution when the Horizon system showed a £28,000 shortfall.

He ran the branch between 2004 and 2009 after taking over from his father, who had been manager for 20 years. They both took out loans to pay back the shortfall, thus avoiding prosecution. Vinall was sacked in January 2010.

In his statement, he told how he suffered a mental breakdown, turned to alcohol and attempted to kill himself several times before being admitted to a mental health institution.

The statement added: “Guy Vinall feels that he cannot ever be fully compensated for what the Post Office has done. He says that they have literally ripped the life out of me.”

Meanwhile, Linda Little, who started working for the Post Office when she was 16, said being accused of stealing “sent me crazy”. She said she paid more than £90,000 of her own money to cover the alleged shortfalls.

“The Post Office took everything from me. They ended my career which I had built from the age of 16 and I absolutely loved my job, I really did,” she said. “They took away my retirement plans and my daughter’s and nephew’s futures as they were going to take over the business from me.”

Susan Hazzleton. Her children were told in the playground their mother was a liar and a thief.


On Thursday, Susan Hazzleton, 68, said her children were taunted in the school playground when her Post Office branch in Chelmsford, Essex closed in 2001.

Her children were told their mother was a liar and a thief and that she was “the reason the village did not have a Post Office or shop any more”, Hazzleton said.

William Graham, 53, who managed the Riverhead sub-post office near Sevenoaks, was convicted for the concealment of supposed losses of £65,521 in January 2011 and received a suspended prison sentence. He was one of 39 former workers to have their convictions quashed by the court of appeal in April 2021.

Fighting back tears, Graham told the inquiry on Wednesday his conviction had left him feeling worthless. “I visited the area with my wife and we were basically told: ‘We shouldn’t be speaking to you, we shouldn’t talk to you, we shouldn’t be seen to be talking to you,’” he said.

Damian Owen, who managed a Post Office branch in Bangor, north Wales, was jailed for eight months after he was accused of stealing £25,000 as a result of computer errors. His conviction was quashed and he believes the former management should face charges.

He said: “I want there to be convictions, not only for the people who have perpetuated the whole conspiracy inside the Post Office; everyone from the top down who knew and was still pushing charges.”

The inquiry, which continues on Monday, expects to hear from about 60 former Post Office workers.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Political Dispute Escalates Between Trump and Musk
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
US Senate Votes to Remove AI Regulation Moratorium from Domestic Policy Bill
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
Jury Deliberations in Diddy Trial Yield Partial Verdict in Serious Criminal Charges
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
King Charles Plans Significant Role for Prince Harry in Coronation
Two Chinese Nationals Arrested for Espionage Activities Against U.S. Navy
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
×