A NEW Forest Post Office plagued with bad fortune in 2007 is starting afresh.

Sway Post Office has been closed since December 13 following an audit. Earlier that month, the former sub-postmaster Ian Kirk was found guilty of stealing more than £55,000 from the business.

The Post Office, in Sway Newsagency, Station Road, is reopening under temporary arrangements.

Inquiries are ongoing after an audit after Kirk had been suspended and, when complete the Post Office will bring in a permanent sub-postmaster for Sway.

The audit's findings remain a secret and the Post Office is keeping quiet about why the branch was shut until the inquiries are finished.

Tom Prendergast, from Royal Mail, said: "Sway Post Office will be open by Wednesday with an interim sub-postmaster in charge.

"There is a possibility it could reopen on Tuesday, but definitely by Wednesday.

"The interim sub-postmaster is a temporary measure. Following the audit, further inquiries are being carried out and when that is completed a permanent sub-postmaster will be appointed."

Kirk, 58, was caught stealing money from the Post Office in June 2006.

A jury at Bournemouth Crown Court found him guilty of theft and false accounting.

The court heard how Kirk, of Station Road, Sway, destroyed the books to hide evidence that money had gone missing and then claimed the branch had been burgled while he was in the toilet.

He is due to be sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on January 18.