A Fife victim of the Post Office scandal says she feels sympathy for ex-boss Paula Vennells, who wept while giving evidence to the Horizon inquiry.
But Myra Philp says Vennells must now tell the truth for the sake of hundreds of affected families across the UK.
Myra and mother Mary were wrongly accused of stealing £70,000 from Auchtermuchty Post Office in 2002.
They lost their business and their home and endured years of suspicion.
And Mary, a former policewoman, died in 2018 without ever clearing her name.
Myra previously insisted “evil bosses” should be jailed.
However, while still angry and fighting for justice, she claims Vennells is being “scapegoated”.
“She is perceived by the public as the only baddie but I’ve always maintained she inherited a lot of this.
“Her crime was to try to cover everything up.”
‘People deserve the truth’
Paula Vennells, Post Office CEO from 2012 to 2019, gave evidence to the Post Office Horizon Inquiry on Wednesday.
And she broke down in tears while the names of hundreds of victims were read out.
Myra added: “Maybe if she had spoken in the last decade it wouldn’t be so pent up within her.
“What I hope for during her three days of evidence is she actually finds it in herself to come out, be open and transparent and tell the truth.
“Everyone who has been a victim of this might then understand why this happened.”
Myra, 62, who now runs an auction house in Methil, was devastated when Post Office bosses suggested her children could be stealing from her.
Her mum was eventually suspended for false accounting.
And Myra is desperately trying to recoup the money she lost from the Post Office.
But she added: “All the money in the world isn’t going to make it better.
“It doesn’t take away the hurt and the people who killed themselves or died not knowing.
“What people do deserve is the actual truth.”
‘I have slight element of sympathy for her’
Hundreds of sub-postmasters had already been accused and prosecuted by the time Vennells took over the top job.
However, under her leadership, the Post Office continued to deny there was a problem with the Horizon IT system.
She apologised to victims during the first of her three days of evidence.
Myra added: “I do actually have a slight element of sympathy for her.
“There were several predecessors who should have and could have made things right back then.
“Definitively, they have known there were problems with the Horizon system since 2013.
“Paula Vennells did lie about it. She spent millions upon millions of pounds trying to fight the postmasters publicly.
“As far as I’m concerned, that was her main crime.”
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