A few selective quotes from www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cddp5gm0155t
"Former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell has admitted embezzling funds from the party over a 12-year period.
"It emerged earlier this year that he had been charged with embezzling £459,046.49 between 12 August 2010 and 13 January 2023.
"The total sum has now fallen to £400,310.65.
"From 2010 to 2022 he spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on luxury goods while carefully trying to hide his criminality with false receipts and accounting
"Murrell was perhaps best known as the husband of former SNP leader and first minister Nicola Sturgeon. The couple married in 2010 but separated last year.
"Sturgeon resigned as first minister in February 2023."
I know as a couple we are very open about our finances and we each know everything, and I know not everyone is like that, but £400k? Surely she must have known... or at least had an odea. It's not as though she's stupid...
Last edited by: smokie on Mon 25 May 26 at 11:34
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I have no doubt that she knew - at various points she absolutely clamped any internal investigations into the finances.
Police Scotland said that it took so long to investigate as Murrell had went out his way to hide and cover his tracks.
Interestingly, in this day and age, their house was absolutely turned upside down as part of this investigation but there was nothing leaked to the press or elsewhere about what was found in the way of personal items etc which is commendation to the police for doing a thoroughly professional job.
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In mitigation, his barrister said he'd had to spend an awful lot of money on hookers. ;-)
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>> In mitigation, his barrister said he'd had to spend an awful lot of money on
>> hookers. ;-)
He said he thought he was payng for Hookahs
Last edited by: Zero on Mon 25 May 26 at 14:26
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Why can’t UK politicians think on a bigger scale. This is peanuts to the amounts that go into Trump’s coffers. Motor homes ? Think wide bodied airliners.
Last edited by: CGNorwich on Mon 25 May 26 at 14:58
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That would have been somewhat conspicuous on his Mother's driveway...
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>> Why can’t UK politicians think on a bigger scale. This is peanuts to the amounts
>> that go into Trump’s coffers. Motor homes ? Think wide bodied airliners.
Hey come on, he managed to lash out for a pencil sharpener from the brand Caran d'Ache, at £110. That takes some imagination.
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Nicola is being EVER so defensive.
'In a statement posted on social media on Monday, Ms Sturgeon, who stepped down as an MSP before the Holyrood election earlier this month, said her reaction was “difficult to put into words”.
“I am angry, hurt, sad and very distressed about the impact of his actions on family, friends and the SNP”, she said.
“To be deceived and let down by a husband I loved and trusted has caused me acute pain.
“Why he acted as he did is, and always will be, beyond my comprehension.”
Ms Sturgeon said she had “no knowledge or suspicion whatsoever that he was using SNP funds for personal purposes”, adding that she was “utterly appalled” by his actions.
She continued: “That I was fully cleared after a thorough investigation underlines that these are not my crimes. I was misled, just as others were.”'
(The Independent)
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Looking at some of the stuff he bought, I feel there are a few mental issues in play.
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>> Ms Sturgeon said she had “no knowledge or suspicion whatsoever that he was using SNP
>> funds for personal purposes”,
Yeah, right.
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What do our resident Scots think about this?
Very embarrassing I would have thought? Nobody spotted it, or did anything for ten years!
Yet the Scots think they could run things on their own?
Why was no one North of the border shouting from the rooftops about this? What were the auditors doing?
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Various folk in the SNP including Joanna Cherry who I highly respect (she's one of the ones that stopped Boris from proroguing Parliament) were highly suspicious of it all but when you have husband and wife as leader and chief exec then they can shut everything down - you either accept it or you are basically frozen out of everything.
>>Yet the Scots think they could run things on their own?
As mentioned previously, I think £600k or what by the chair of the party really disappears into insignificance when you look into corruption at UK Parliament level? And this was straightforward theft for personal gain as opposed to bribery, payments for security etc etc which would have far more impact on the country as a whole.
>>Why was no one North of the border shouting from the rooftops about this? What were the auditors doing?
There were plenty shouting from rooftops, in fact this all came about with one individual party member (Sean Clerkin) who went to the police to investigate why a ringfenced fund of money for independence campaigning had disappeared. This then led to the famous blue tent in the garden etc etc. But before that, as mentioned above, there were lots of questions internally but they always got shut down by the Murrells.
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Not particularly embarrassing as it is an internal party thing.
Far more embarrassing is our role in raping the country's coffers of COVID monies by s***ting out a certain business woman 54 years ago.
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Hope you aren't moneing.....
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And yes, re auditors, there are still a lot of unanswered questions.
The finance guy Beattie and Sturgeon were both arrested but then released without charge so dont know whether they were absolutely unaware of what happened or whether the police and Procurator Fiscal wanted to just focus on the main guy.
I can see how you could maybe get some expenses under the radar but HTF he managed to get a camper van........ (which apparently was never used or driven which raises even more questions)
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>> I can see how you could maybe get some expenses under the radar but HTF
>> he managed to get a camper van........ (which apparently was never used or driven which
>> raises even more questions)
>>
He bought all this crap on the Party's credit card...
Why were the auditors not screaming. Were they frightened of the pair of them?
Nicola sturgeon is, of course, completely innocent of everyfink.
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“a camper van which apparently was never used or driven “
Isn’t that fairly normal for camper vans?
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The list of items bought by Murrell is... shall we say, intriguing.
It includes a Celestron 10169 NexStar 8SE computerised Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope (£1,199), with a number of accessories for the device.
Grand Theft Auto V for Playstation 4 (£42.99). Other gaming-related purchases include Fifa 2014, Battlefield 4, and a Playstation 3 console.
Three Wusthof manicure sets (£293.70).
Two Freskaro carabiner clips and a 2win2buy rock climbing carabiner outdoor sports tool (£40.49). (You read that correctly - rock climbing kit!)
Jura Giga 5 Cromo coffee machine (£3,231.90).
Two Feuilles pepper and salt grinders (£2,618.16).
Eight umbrellas (£1,990.50).
Plus many other smaller items.
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Like I said, I think there were mental health issues in play. Some sort of Magpie Syndrome.
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There could be loads of stuff at play
Husband frustrated that his wife had a far more powerful position than him?
Maybe set out with low cost stuff and realised he was getting away with it so kept getting dearer and dearer stuff
Maybe actually wanted to undermine his wife?
Police also said he went well out his way to cover his tracks and that is why investigation took so long so I am guessing maybe it wasnt a straight forward case of all the genuine receipts being stapled to his credit card bill and submitted once a month to auditors?
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This story is an iceberg. We haven't seen nine tenths of it yet.
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The press are going to be doing a lot of digging, and I think Sturgeon is going to be facing some uncomfortable questions. It is beyond belief that she couldn't see something that was clearly wrong.
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>> I think Sturgeon
>> is going to be facing some uncomfortable questions. It is beyond belief that she couldn't
>> see something that was clearly wrong.
I understand that under seven hours of police questioning, she answered all questions with "no comment"!
Make of that what you will.
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>> I understand that under seven hours of police questioning, she answered all questions with "no
>> comment"!
>> Make of that what you will.
Standard legal advice.
Were you in her situation with possibility of seeing Mrs BT go down would you answer fullly?
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>>
>> Standard legal advice.
>>
>> Were you in her situation with possibility of seeing Mrs BT go down would you
>> answer fullly?
>>
Absolutely standard advice, albeit somewhat at odds with her frequent statements that she was cooperating fully with the police inquiry…
I also think that £400k is only part of the what he / they stole. The original report of missing, ostensibly ring-fenced, funds had a figure of £670k, and I’m sure the £400k is only what the investigation could prove beyond reasonable doubt had been stolen. It wouldn’t surprise me if the same amount again was misappropriated over the 10 of 12 year period, but in such a way or on things that could no longer be proved to that necessary standard. After all, £670k is only £1k a week over 12 years - and someone who felt as entitled to use party funds for themselves wouldn’t struggle to fritter away as little as that surely!
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>>
>>
>> Standard legal advice.
>>
>> Were you in her situation with possibility of seeing Mrs BT go down would you
>> answer fullly?
>>
I think we have a right to expect our elected politicians to display a higher standard of behaviour than members of a gang of bank robbers.
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>> I think we have a right to expect our elected politicians to display a higher
>> standard of behaviour than members of a gang of bank robbers.
Are you suggesting my missus is a member of a gang of bank robbers?
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>> I think we have a right to expect our elected politicians to display a higher
>> standard of behaviour than members of a gang of bank robbers.
On the contrary, they're entitled to the same legal protection, including that against self incrimination, as the rest of us.
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>>
>>
>> On the contrary, they're entitled to the same legal protection, including that against self incrimination,
>> as the rest of us.
>>
I take that point, but it doesn't fit in with her protestations that she was completely unaware of what was going on. I wonder how much pressure Murrell came under to plead guilty? Had it gone to trial Sturgeon (And others) would have had to endure a very uncomfortable time in the witness box, where "No comment" would not have been an option.
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>> >> I think we have a right to expect our elected politicians to display a
>> higher
>> >> standard of behaviour than members of a gang of bank robbers.
>>
>> On the contrary, they're entitled to the same legal protection, including that against self incrimination,
>> as the rest of us.
>>
I think most members of the public put them both in the same group as well.
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>> >> I understand that under seven hours of police questioning, she answered all questions with
>> "no
>> >> comment"!
>> >> Make of that what you will.
>>
>>
>>
That's somewhat at odds with her statement of 'fully helping the police with their enquiries '
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>> >> >> I understand that under seven hours of police questioning, she answered all questions
>> with "no comment"!
>> Make of that what you will
>>
>> That's somewhat at odds with her statement of 'fully helping the police with their enquiries
>>
Any answer she may have given to almost any question would likely implicate her, or at least evidence her knowledge of his actions. Much better to emulate the three monkeys!
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"That's somewhat at odds with her statement of 'fully helping the police with their enquiries'."
Sturgeon's solicitor said the answer of "No Comment" was standard legal advice and claimed that she had later provided a "detailed written response" to Police Scotland questions.
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>> "That's somewhat at odds with her statement of 'fully helping the police with their enquiries'."
>>
>> Sturgeon's solicitor said the answer of "No Comment" was standard legal advice and claimed that
>> she had later provided a "detailed written response" to Police Scotland questions.
>>
Yes I'm sure the written statement was very helpful to the police.
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In cases like this I always think that whatever figure they finally get done for, that's the amount which CPS have decided can be easily proved and not easily defended, but the actual figures is multiples of that. Mind you if they could tie it back exactly to credit card sounds maybe not so much of a discrepancy in this case.
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>> Police also said he went well out his way to cover his tracks and that
>> is why investigation took so long
I think the tracks of the 100k+ motorhome to his mums house were not covered.
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They both earned decent money (~£100k) and certainly Nicola had a demanding job.
That hubby spent sums up to the low £ thousands without provoking comment does not surprise me. They had separate bank accounts so no visibility of the actual cost of items - even £3k coffee machines.
Having separate bank accounts is not uncommon - as have wife and I for over 40 years. If I desperately want to know what she is spending I can do so, but if basically works on trust.
The motor home is somewhat different. A £100+k road vehicle tends to be a bit obvious. That Nicky claims to be unaware of it is close to implausible. Why Peter bought it and never used it is strange behaviour - expensive clothing, watches, coffee machines etc I can understand.
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>> Like I said, I think there were mental health issues in play. Some sort of
>> Magpie Syndrome.
He was powerless and insignificant under his wife. Aparently he went to a expensive jewler, flashed a wad, and said "you are talking to a man with the money". Think that says it all. He was braking the sturgeon imposed iron bars
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The whole Murrell story may get a lot worse.
Apparently, regarding his embezzlement of SNP funds, he was sufficiently arrogant to continue his crimes even during a police investigation into his party’s finances.
And now there is a suspicion that public funds (e.g. grants from the Electoral Commission) may have been involved and there is talk of a Holyrood enquiry, or if that fails, a Westminster enquiry.
Sturgeon has said that it is clear that oversight from within the SNP was lacking in failing to detect Murrell's crimes. The reluctance of the current SNP leader, John Swinney, to sanction a Holyrood inquiry now suggests he fears the scandal may spread beyond Murrell.
And there is the lingering suspicion that, despite Sturgeon's vehement denials, she may have known more than she admits and that at least Murrell's crimes benefitted the marital home and therefore herself. She is also implicated in attempting to divert suspicion (and thus prevent investigation) into Murrell's activities.
The whole thing stinks, of course.
Last edited by: James Loveless on Sat 30 May 26 at 12:11
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Agree with most of that but I have modified my opinion re Nicola a little since opening the thread .
I am not really convinced she knew noting but given that they apparently did have separate accounts, and were both in high paid jobs, and she didn't see the cost of some of the items, and she was doing what must be a fairly heavy duty job, I can accept that maybe she wasn't aware. Or at least I don't think they could prove it beyond reasonable doubt, so having thought about it, I can see why the police may have not pursued it.
And it sort of follows that if you didn't consider it likely that it was true you might try to deflect investigation into your partners affairs. I think I would.
It is quite astonishing that no-one questioned the bills as they came through. Reminds me of when I first got an All Star card from the company for my petrol - someone found a garage that would sell them other goods on it, and they eventually rose to the point of buying a complete set of garden furniture on it when it became evident that the company never checked!!
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Murrell (SNP bloke) pleads guilty to embezzlement - Bobby
