Ex-Scottish National Party chief pleads guilty to embezzling funds
Key takeaways
- Murrell admitted the offences at the High Court in Edinburgh after an investigation into the party’s finances.
- Murrell, who was the SNP’s chief executive from 2001 to 2023, was remanded in custody by the judge before a sentencing hearing scheduled for June 23.
- Judge James Young said Murrell was responsible for a “gross breach of trust” for embezzling offences between August 2010 and October 2022.
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Murrell admitted the offences at the High Court in Edinburgh after an investigation into the party’s finances.
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogle Add Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Peter Murrell, right, arrives at the High Court on May 25, 2026 in Edinburgh, Scotland [Jeff J Mitchell/Getty]By Al Jazeera Staff and AFPPublished On 25 May 202625 May 2026The former chief executive of the ruling Scottish National Party (SNP), and ex-husband of former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, has pleaded guilty to embezzling more than 400,000 British pounds ($540,000) from the party’s funds.
Sixty-one-year-old Peter Murrell admitted the offences at the High Court in Edinburgh on Monday, following a years-long investigation into the SNP’s finances and the alleged diversion of donations intended to support the Scottish independence campaign.