I promised William on his death bed I'd try my best to clear his name

Widow tells how Post Office I.T. mistake left innocent postmaster broken and degraded

- SALLY HIND

THE widow of a Scottish postmaster wrongly convicted in the Horizon scandal has fulfilled her husband's dying wish to clear his name.

William Quarm was left a "broken man" when he was convicted of embezzling tens of thousands of pounds from his Post Office on North Uist in 2010.

Threatened with jail and unable to explain the missing cash, the dad of five was forced to plead guilty to the charge and died two years later, aged 69, having lost his entire livelihood.

Now his wife Anne, 72, has succeeded in a gruelling bid to quash the conviction after promising William on his death bed that she would fight for justice.

The family are among dozens across the UK who have overturned convictions linked to the Post Office's faulty Horizon IT system, which resulted in hundreds of operators being prosecuted.

Anne told the Record: "The court's decision is a joy beyond measure for us.

"My husband pleaded guilty because he was told he was going to jail if he didn't.

"He was a broken man and very upset and not well, as it later turned out.

"I promised him I would try my very best to clear his name and asked for him to forgive anyone who had done him wrong and to go in peace. He agreed to do that and that was a blessing." 

William, of the island's Claddach Kirkibost, had worked as a postmaster for almost 14 years, running Paible Post Office and shop in Bayhead, when police arrived to quiz him over missing cash.

Anne said: "They accused him of not having the money they were expecting him to have in stock. He couldn't understand how he didn't have it. He hadn't done anything with it.