Sturgeon’s husband charged in embezzlement inquiry
NICOLA STURGEON’S husband has been charged in connection with embezzlement of funds from the Scottish National Party.
Peter Murrell, the SNP’S former chief executive, was taken into custody at 9.13am yesterday morning by detectives investigating the funding and finances of the party. Police Scotland said he was charged more than nine hours later, at 6.35pm, after “further questioning”.
He was released from police custody and a report will be sent to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service in due course. It was the second time Mr Murrell has been arrested in connection with the inquiry, following a police raid just over a year ago at the home he shared with Ms Sturgeon. He has hardly been seen in public since.
Mr Murrell was the party’s chief executive between 2001 and March last year, when he resigned after accepting the blame for the public being misled about the number of SNP members. He married Ms Sturgeon in 2010. It is understood Mr Murrell has resigned his SNP membership.
Since July 2021, Police Scotland’s Operation Branchform has been examining the SNP’S handling of more than £600,000 in donations raised in 2017 for a second independence referendum.
Supporters complained when accounts lodged with Companies House in 2020 appeared to show the SNP only had £97,000 in the bank despite the referendum never having been held. On Apr 5 last year, police raided Ms Sturgeon and Mr Murrell’s home near Glasgow. Officers searched it for two days, erecting a large evidence tent, and a luxury motorhome was confiscated from outside the Fife home of Mr Murrell’s elderly mother.
He was also arrested in the raid, which took place the week after Humza Yousaf became First Minister. The following month Colin Beattie, the party’s then treasurer, was arrested and then Ms Sturgeon was arrested in June. All three were released without charge pending further investigation and Ms Sturgeon has vigorously denied any wrongdoing.
Sir Iain Livingtone, Police Scotland’s former chief constable, disclosed last year the inquiry had “moved beyond” complaints that the £600,000 had gone missing. Asked why Operation Branchform was taking so long, he noted that investigations around “fraud”, “potential embezzlement” and “the misuse of funds” take a long time. But Murray
Foote, Mr Murrell’s successor as SNP chief executive, has called the search of Ms Sturgeon’s home a “grotesque circus” and predicted no charges would ever be brought.
Senior SNP figures recently called for police to return the confiscated motorhome, arguing the vehicle could be sold to raise funds for the cash-strapped party or used as a battle bus during the upcoming general election campaign.
In a statement, Police Scotland said: “A 59-year-old man has today, Thursday, 18 April, 2024, been charged in connection with the embezzlement of funds from the Scottish National Party. The man is no longer in police custody. As this investigation is ongoing we are unable to comment further.”
Detectives had 12 hours to question Mr Murrell before they had to charge him, release him or ask a senior officer for a 12-hour extension.
A spokesman for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) said: “Senior professional prosecutors from COPFS and an Advocate Depute are working with police on this ongoing investigation. It is standard practice that any case regarding politicians is dealt with by prosecutors without the involvement of the Lord Advocate or Solicitor General. All Scotland’s prosecutors act independently of political interference. As is routine, to protect the integrity of ongoing investigations, we do not comment in detail on their conduct.”
Craig Hoy, the Scottish Conservative chairman, said: “This is an extremely serious development and it’s essential that all SNP staff and politicians, past and present, co-operate fully with Police Scotland.” Jackie Baillie, Scottish Labour’s deputy leader, said: “This is another incredibly concerning development in this long-running investigation. It is essential that Police Scotland is able to proceed with this investigation without interference.”
Keith Brown, the SNP’S deputy leader, told reporters at Holyrood: “I’m not going to comment on an ongoing policy inquiry. It would be wrong to do it.”
‘It’s essential that all SNP staff and politicians, past and present, co-operate fully with Police Scotland’