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Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney was informed about a criminal charge against former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell several weeks before the information was made public. On 19 January, Scotland’s Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain, who serves as both the highest-ranking law officer and a minister within the Scottish government, sent Swinney an email notifying him that Murrell had been indicted for embezzling close to £460,000 from the party. It was only on 13 February that the media first reported the details of this charge.
Peter Murrell, aged 61, stepped down from his role as SNP chief executive in 2023 after over twenty years in the position. Earlier that year, he was arrested in connection with Operation Branchform, the police investigation into the SNP’s financial dealings. Murrell was subsequently charged with embezzlement in April 2024, accused of misappropriating £459,000 between August 2010 and January 2023. Reports revealed that the alleged funds were used to purchase luxury items, including two cars and a motorhome.
Lord Advocate Bain’s email, seen by BBC Scotland News and first reported by the Scottish Sun, emphasized a longstanding principle whereby the lord advocate does not intervene in legal decisions involving politicians. The memo was also circulated among senior civil servants and special advisers as part of an effort to maintain transparency, according to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS). A spokesperson for the COPFS explained the email’s intent was to clarify that Bain was not involved in the case and to remind recipients that the ongoing nature of the case meant it should not be publicly commented upon until formal proceedings progressed.
The preliminary court hearing for Murrell, initially set to take place on 19 April at the High Court in Glasgow, has since been postponed to 25 May and will be held at the High Court in Edinburgh. The Scottish government maintained that it had no role in the decision to delay this hearing, which is now scheduled after the May 7 Holyrood election. The situation has attracted political scrutiny, with Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay questioning why the public had not been informed while Swinney had received a detailed brief shared with government advisers. Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also urged Bain to appear before MSPs, expressing concerns over the potential conflict inherent in her dual role and suggesting the timing of the notification could be seen as an attempt to influence the political landscape before the election
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