Senior SNP figures ‘fear Nicola Sturgeon & Peter Murrell will be charged imminently’
SENIOR SNP figures have become 'increasingly concerned' that Nicola Sturgeon and Peter Murrell will be 'charged imminently' as a police probe into the party's finances continues.
According to The Times, numerous Nats chiefs have revealed that they fear the couple could be charged as early as this weekend.
One person said: "It feels this is now coming to a head and that these investigations are likely to result in charges being brought".
However, officers have repeatedly refused to be held to a timescale on when their inquiries may conclude.
Yesterday, Scotland’s Chief Constable revealed that the investigation has “moved beyond” the initial complaint - and hinted cops are investigating “potential embezzlement”.
Sir Iain Livingstone also appeared to suggest that officers are looking at the “misuse of funds” after the scope of Operation Branchform was widened.
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Cops launched a probe into the Nats in July 2021 following a series of complaints about how around £600,000 of donations for an independence campaign raised between 2017 and 2019 were spent.
Questions were raised when accounts showed the SNP had just under £97,000 in the bank at the end of 2019, and total net assets of about £272,000.
When asked about the probe on BBC’s Radio 4, Sir Iain said: “It’s moved beyond what some of the initial reports were, and that’s not uncommon in investigations such as this."
He said: “Investigations into the finances of an organisation, the finances of an individual are often complex.
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"Investigations around fraud, or investigations around potential embezzlement, investigations around the misuse of funds take time.”
In April, the SNP’s ex-chief executive Peter Murrell was arrested and quizzed under caution by police as part of their probe.
His Uddingston home - which he shares with Ms Sturgeon - was raided by cops with a giant tent erected outside their front door.
The SNP HQ in Edinburgh was also searched and a luxury motorhome was seized by officers from outside Mr Murrell’s elderly mother’s home.
Just weeks later the Nats former treasurer Colin Beattie was then arrested, with Ms Sturgeon then also arrested last month.
All three were quizzed by cops before being released without charge.
Despite refusing to give a specific timeline on when the investigation will come to an end, Sir Iain suggested that it was moving forward.
And he said due to the complex nature of financial probes - it had taken time to get to the current point.
He said: “You need to go and obtain information from banks and other financial institutions. We can’t just do that automatically, we need to seek judicial warrants for that, there needs to be a process around that.
"So the time that’s been taken in my judgement is absolutely necessary, there’s been a prudent, thorough and proportionate investigation carried out.”
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, Alex Cole-Hamilton, said Sir Ian's comments suggest that it meant that it "may finally be over soon".
He added: "Too much political oxygen has been focused on the internal problems of the governing party, just at a time when the public needs SNP ministers focused on the day job.”
Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: “It is right that Police Scotland is investigating every aspect of this case. From what was a single complaint, it now appears that there are multiple lines of inquiry and a can of worms has opened up.
“It is clear that Chief Constable Livingstone and his officers are working hard to shine light on this unedifying period in Scottish politics.
“A culture of secrecy has clearly enveloped the SNP and the Scottish Government and the people of Scotland deserve answers.”
MSP and Scottish Conservative chairman Craig Hoy said: “Confirmation that the investigation into the SNP’s finances has moved beyond the initial complaint only highlights the seriousness of this investigation.
“We have also seen that Police Scotland have been forced to spend over £800,000 investigating the SNP’s finances at a time when police budgets are already stretched to their limit.
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“As the investigation expands, Nicola Sturgeon and other senior SNP figures – including Humza Yousaf – must continue to cooperate fully with it and be fully transparent at all times.
“The murkiness surrounding the SNP’s finances is not going away and the nationalists are distracted at the worst possible time. Meanwhile, the Scottish Conservatives are focused on Scotland’s real priorities such as the cost-of-living crisis and fixing our NHS.”
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