ROTHBURY, England – A post office owner in North Yorkshire, England, is attempting to appeal his conviction for the murder of his wife, claiming the faulty Horizon IT system used to wrongly jail postmasters was also used to frame him for the crime. Robin Garbutt is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of his wife, Diana, in 2010, but he insists that evidence relied on during the trial is faulty.
The Horizon scandal, involving faulty accounting software, led to more than 700 subpostmasters and subpostmistresses being handed criminal convictions after it made it appear as though money was missing at their branches. Garbutt claims that the evidence used in his trial was manipulated by the Post Office to make him look bad, and he has attempted to appeal his conviction multiple times. However, Diana’s mother, Agnes Gaylor, believes that Garbutt is merely taking advantage of the Horizon scandal to gain publicity.
The case presents a complex web of evidence, with the prosecution claiming that Garbutt staged a robbery to cover up losses reported on the Horizon accounting system. Despite this, Garbutt maintains his innocence, alleging that a man wearing a balaclava and holding a gun forced him to hand over a large sum of cash before discovering his wife’s body. The couple’s troubled marriage, Diana’s relationships with other men, and significant financial strain also shed light on the complexities of the case.
In addition, a similar armed robbery occurred at the couple’s post office a year earlier, and a gun and balaclava were later found near the post office. However, the police did not consider this evidence to be relevant to the case. Garbutt’s attempt to appeal his conviction comes as the fallout from the Horizon scandal continues to reverberate, sparking nationwide outrage and concerns about the treatment of those wrongly jailed due to the faulty accounting system.
Despite the complexities and attempts to challenge his conviction, Garbutt is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of his wife. The Horizon scandal, which led to the imprisonment of hundreds of innocent postmasters and postmistresses, continues to garner attention and raise questions about the criminal justice system’s reliance on faulty evidence.