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| Nicola Sturgeon’s husband, Peter Murrell, arrested in SNP funding inquiry | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Police Scotland say Murrell ‘arrested as a suspect’ as officers search addresses thought to include his and Sturgeon’s home | |
| Peter Murrell, Nicola Sturgeon’s husband, has been arrested by Scottish police in an investigation into the Scottish National party’s fundraising and finances. | Peter Murrell, Nicola Sturgeon’s husband, has been arrested by Scottish police in an investigation into the Scottish National party’s fundraising and finances. |
| Police Scotland said a 58-year-old man had been “arrested as a suspect” on Wednesday and added that its officers were carrying out searches at addresses linked to the investigation. | |
| The addresses being searched were thought to include Sturgeon and Murrell’s home in Glasgow, where the front door was shielded by a tent, and the SNP’s headquarters close to the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh. | |
| Police vans were parked in a sidestreet close to the SNP’s offices, and police tape went up around the perimeter of Sturgeon’s home. Murrell is a former chief executive of the SNP. | |
| BREAKING: 58 year old man arrested at former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s house in connection with the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the SNP. @itvnews pic.twitter.com/vtEUtlgKun | |
| The investigation was launched after complaints about the SNP’s handling of £600,000 in donations raised by the party ostensibly to campaign for and hold a second independence referendum. | The investigation was launched after complaints about the SNP’s handling of £600,000 in donations raised by the party ostensibly to campaign for and hold a second independence referendum. |
| It is alleged the money instead was used to help with the party’s day-to-day running costs. | It is alleged the money instead was used to help with the party’s day-to-day running costs. |
| In a short statement, the police said: “A 58-year-old man has today, Wednesday, 5 April 2023, been arrested as a suspect in connection with the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National party.“The man is in custody and is being questioned by Police Scotland detectives. Officers are also carrying out searches at a number of addresses as part of the investigation. A report will be sent to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. [As] the investigation is ongoing we are unable to comment further.” | |
| In a statement the SNP said: “Clearly it would not be appropriate to comment on any live police investigation but the SNP have been co-operating fully with this investigation and will continue to do so. At its meeting on Saturday, the governing body of the SNP, the NEC, agreed to a review of governance and transparency – that will be taken forward in the coming weeks.” | |
| Jackie Baillie, the Scottish Labour party’s deputy leader, said: “This is a deeply concerning development and the Police Scotland investigation must be allowed to proceed without interference.” |