The Metropolitan Police officer leading the national investigation into crimes committed during the Post Office scandal said Fujitsu’s contact to run the police network “complicates matters”.
Through Fujitsu’s Law Enforcement Community Network (LECN) contract with the Home Office, separate nationwide police forces share information. The network acts as the backbone for cross-force collaboration, allowing the Metropolitan Police and other forces to coordinate investigations such as Operation Olympos.
In August, Computer Weekly raised concerns over a potential conflict of interest if Operation Olympos uses the network, due to Fujitsu staff being investigated.
The investigation is a nationwide operation involving police forces across the UK, and is currently reviewing over 1.5 million documents.
Four Regional Investigation Teams are made up from police forces across England and Wales, with Police Scotland, Police Service of Northern Ireland and the National Crime Agency also making a contribution.
Asked if he was comfortable with this at a press update on the investigation, Metropolitan Police commander Stephen Clayman of Operation Olympos would not comment on the Fujitsu contract, but said: “There are these things in the sidelines which complicate matters, and that is something I’m trying not to be distracted with.
“We’ve got a job to do, and we’ll do that objectively and as the evidence takes us.”
LECN extended
The Home Office extended LECN in November 2024 through a £15m deal, despite the supplier being investigated in a Post Office scandal probe. This was months after the announcement of Operation Olympos in May 2024.
The LECN platform uses networking equipment and encryption technology to provide secure connectivity between forces. It enables real-time sharing of intelligence, case files and operational data across the country, with orchestration, monitoring and access. It’s managed by police-vetted Fujitsu staff.
LECN is made up of 16 contracts with a combined value of about £29m, with the largest contract awarded to Fujitsu to supply software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) continuity.
Speaking to Computer Weekly in August, Forensic criminal psychologist Ian Ross, a former police officer, said: “There is a de facto conflict of interest.
“Given the Metropolitan police-led Operation Olympos is currently investigating Fujitsu itself, their employees involved in the scandal concerning nothing less than alleged perjury in both the High Court and Crown Court, how can they justify this dubious business relationship?”
Fujitsu subcontractor
Computer Weekly also revealed a Fujitsu subcontractor with the Metropolitan Police. A freedom of information request revealed that DHL Supply Chain provides officers with uniforms. Fujitsu supplies and supports the online ordering platform, known as Uniform Hub.
The data includes personal and employment details such as employee number and user ID, name, email address, gender, last hire date and termination date if relevant. It also includes information on what Metropolitan Police officers are working on, the start date of current assignments, rank bands and job roles.
The Police National Computer (PNC) also runs on a Fujitsu mainframe. This is the central database used by UK police and law enforcement agencies to store and access information. It’s used to carry out real-time checks, including on criminal records, missing persons and vehicle registrations.
It is accessed by all UK police forces and other authorised agencies, and is part of the UK’s critical national infrastructure, providing 24/7 availability.
Fujitsu has provided the mainframe technology and support for many years. The PNC is being replaced by the Law Enforcement Data Service, but delays meant Fujitsu was selected to provide support for the existing hardware until the new system is rolled out.
The Post Office scandal was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009, revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they suffered due to the accounting software (see timeline of Computer Weekly articles about the scandal below).