POL00055162
POL00055162
Hugh A. Cauthery LLB
Solicitor — Advocate (H.C.C.)
6 Queens Road, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire PE13 2PB
Tel/Fax: Mobile GRO:
Em
Mr. R.G. Wilson
Head of Criminal Division
Royal Mail Legal Services
3" Floor 6a Eccleston Street
London SW1W 9LT
12 August 2010
Your ref: CRM/264657/RGW
Dear Mr. Wilson
Post Office Ltd v. A. Henderson - Norwich Magistrates’ Court — 7 October 2010 at 10am
Further to our telephone call this morning, the defendant indicated a not guilty plea and all were
agreed that the case was not suitable for summary trial. The matter was therefore adjourned until
7 October at 10am for committal proceedings. The court would expect us to serve the defence
with the papers within 6 weeks. The defendant was remanded on unconditional bail.
It may be that you would wish to wait for counsel to advise in due course but it occurs to me that
we need to know why the audit on 10 February took place. The interviewing officer did not
know (see tape counter 28.39 in the ROTI). If suspicions were harboured, there may well have
been reasonable grounds for them. That evidence could assist.
Also, I had to amend the charge because there was no commencement date. I played safe and
made it 1 January 1997 (Henderson had been engaged as sub-postmistress for 13 years, we are
told). Equally, the date of the last clear audit (if there was one) could be used.
It seems to me that, if we can show that, when preparing her branch trading statement in early
January 2010, Henderson would have seen discrepancies thrown up by the Horizon system, then
it raises the question why did she not query it with the help line? In addition, if she really was
“not very good with figures” (as she suggests in interview at 22.56) it is reasonable to suppose
that she would have been in touch with the help line on a regular basis. Any absence of such
contacts would tend to refute her point on that.
I look forward to receiving a copy of the committal papers in due course... The defending
Li are Belmores of 40 Crown Road, Norwich NR1 3DX (telephone ! RO fax
and their reference is JAS/dm/HEN/50664.
_Moaurs.sincerals..
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