Paula Vennells was told almost a decade ago that some postmasters had potentially been wrongly convicted, a leaked email and tape have revealed. 

The shamed former Post Office boss was handed detailed case files for eight subpostmasters in 2013, including one who went to jail and that of Lee Castleton who was made bankrupt. 

After reading the key evidence, Ms Vennells sent an email in which she described the cases as 'very disturbing' and that she 'takes this very seriously'. 

The revelation has been described by Conservative MP Nadhim Zahawi as the 'smoking gun' that is the cover-up of the Horizon IT scandal and has called on her to 'finally admit the truth'.

While other victims of the scandal do not know how Vennells sleeps at night.

Paula Vennells was told almost a decade ago that some postmasters had potentially been wrongly convicted

Mock-up of the email sent by former Post Office boss Paula Vennells after she received detailed case files of eight subpostmasters that had potentially been wrongly convicted

In the email sent on October 2, 2013, uncovered by ITV News, to Ron Warmington of independent investigators from Second Sight, Vennells writes: 'I have just read through the attachments. Apart from finding them very disturbing (I defy anyone not to), I am now even better informed,' before she adds, 'As I said... I take this very seriously...'

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Vennells, an ordained priest, sent the email hours after she spoke to Warmington on the phone.

During the phone call, also obtained by ITV News, the pair had discussed the mediation scheme that had been set up for postmasters who insisted the faulty Horizon system was to blame for the gap in their branch accounts. 

During the call, Mr Warmington said: 'I personally would like to think that in due course you and others would look at some of the applications that have come in. I'd pick what I think are … the ones that tell the common story … that probably would be worth spending an hour reading.'

In response, Ms Vennells says: 'Get somebody to email me. I'm more than happy to do that. Is it available?'

Mr Warmington replies: 'OK, I'll do it right now.'

Six weeks after sending the email, Ms Vennells ignored calls form the Post Office's Executive Committee to pause prosecutions while Horizon was investigated, according to evidence given to the public inquiry by former Post Office General Counsel Chris Aujard.

The shamed former Post Office boss was handed detailed case files for eight subpostmasters in 2013, including one who went to jail and that of Lee Castleton who was made bankrupt

More than 900 sub-postmasters were convicted of theft, fraud and false accounting between 1999 and 2015 due to faults in Fujitsu's Horizon system

Other recordings have revealed that the company and Fujitsu knew their faulty computer system could alter sub-postmasters' accounts more than ten years ago, despite denying this for years

That's despite the former Post Office chief - who had her CBE formally stripped from her by the King - telling MPs in 2015 she was not aware of any miscarriage of justice and 'it would've been really important to me and the Post Office that we surfaced those'.

Mr Zahawi was a member of the Business Select Committee which questioned Ms Vennells in 2015.

The former chancellor told ITV: 'I think the email and the tape will come to be seen as the smoking gun that is the cover-up that has taken place at the Post Office.'

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Lord Arbuthnot, who campaigned for years on behalf of subpostmasters, says it shows Vennells 'knew exactly what was going on'. 

More than 900 sub-postmasters were convicted of theft, fraud and false accounting between 1999 and 2015 due to faults in Fujitsu's Horizon system. For more than two decades, sub-postmasters complained the system was faulty. 

The shocking injustice was thrown back into the spotlight in the ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office, based on campaigner Alan Bates's bid for justice.

Mr Castleton, who was portrayed by Will Mellor in the hard-hitting drama that enraged the nation, was declared bankrupt when he was ordered to pay back £25,000 and legal costs totalling £321,000. 

'I just want her to tell the truth… all those years all we wanted was justice and to be listened to and to be understood,' he told ITV. 

The case file for postmaster Nick Thomas, now aged 77, was also read by Ms Vennells. He was jailed for 13 weeks in 2006 when £48,000 went missing from his Anglesey branch. 

He called it a 'total cover up' and said he hoped Ms Vennells would tell the truth when she appears at the inquiry tomorrow.  

Ms Vennells ran the Post Office at the height of the scandal while it routinely denied there was a problem with its Horizon IT system. 

Mr Castleton, who was declared bankrupt when he was ordered to pay back £25,000 and legal costs totalling £321,000, wants Vennells to tell the truth

The case file for postmaster Noel Thomas (pictured in 2018), now aged 77, was also read by Vennells. He was jailed for 13 weeks in 2006 when £48,000 went missing from his Anglesey branch

Former postmaster Alan Bates, who is portrayed by Toby Jones (pictured) in the drama, led and won the initial legal battle after himself falling victim to the faults

The scandal is seen as one of the UK's biggest miscarriages of justice and has gained national attention thanks to Mr Bates Vs The Post Office airing on ITV

In a statement, Ms Vennells said: 'I continue to support and focus on co-operating with the Inquiry.

'I am truly sorry for the devastation caused to the sub-postmasters and their families, whose lives were torn apart by being wrongly accused and wrongly prosecuted as a result of the Horizon system.

'I now intend to continue to focus on assisting the Inquiry and will not make any further public comment until it has concluded.'

A Post Office spokesperson said: 'We apologise unreservedly to victims of the Horizon IT Scandal and our focus remains on supporting the ongoing Public Inquiry to establish the truth of what happened so those affected can receive the justice and redress they deserve.'

MailOnline has contacted lawyers representing Ms Vennells for further comment. 

Timeline of a travesty that's still playing out 25 years on

• 1999: The Horizon IT system from Fujitsu starts being rolled out to Post Office branches, replacing traditional paper-based accounting methods.
• 2003: Sub-postmaster Alan Bates had his contract terminated by the Post Office after he refused to accept liability for £1,200 of losses in his branch in Llandudno, North Wales.
• 2004: The branch in Bridlington, East Yorkshire, run by Lee Castleton, showed a shortfall of £23,000 over a 12-week period. Mr Castleton repeatedly asked the Post Office for help, but was sacked and sued for refusing to repay the cash. He was made bankrupt after a two-year legal battle, ordered to pay more than £300,000 for the company's legal bill.
• 2006: Jo Hamilton, sub-postmaster at South Warnborough, Hampshire, was sacked over financial discrepancies. She re-mortgaged her house twice to fill the shortfall and was charged with theft of £36,000. She later admitted a lesser charge of false accounting to avoid jail.
• 2009: Computer Weekly magazine told the story of seven postmasters who had experienced unexplained losses. The Justice for Sub-postmasters Alliance (JFSA) was formed.
• 2010: Mr Bates, from JFSA, writes to minister Sir Ed Davey about the flawed Horizon system and urges him to intervene. His warnings were dismissed.
• 2012: With MPs raising concerns about convictions and the Horizon system, the Post Office launches an external review, with forensic accountants Second Sight appointed to investigate.
• 2013: An interim report by Second Sight reveals serious concerns and defects in the IT system. The Daily Mail reveals dozens of postmasters may have been wrongly taken to court and jailed.
• 2015: It is revealed the Post Office failed to properly investigate why money was missing and concluded computer failures may have been to blame. The Post Office finally stops prosecuting sub-postmasters but 700 end up being convicted.
• 2017: A group legal action is launched against the Post Office by 555 sub-postmasters.
• 2019: The High Court case ends in a £43million settlement but much of the cash was swallowed up in legal fees and victims received around £20,000 each. Post Office chief Paula Vennells awarded a CBE in New Year's honours.
• 2020: The Post Office agrees not to oppose 44 sub-postmasters' appeals against conviction.
• 2021: A public inquiry begins and is ongoing. The Court of Appeal quashes a further 39 convictions.
• 2022: The Government announces a new compensation scheme.
• 2023: Every postal worker wrongly convicted for Horizon offences will receive £600,000 compensation.
• 2024: Mr Bates vs The Post Office first aired on ITV1 on New Year's Day.