Scottish police said they had arrested a 58-year-old and were searching a number of homes as part of their investigation into SNP finances.
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London The husband of resigning Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon has been arrested as part of an investigation into financial inconsistencies in her party SNP. Peter Murrell was taken into police custody on Wednesday morning, British media reported.
Scottish police said they had arrested a 58-year-old and were searching a number of homes as part of their investigation into SNP finances. However, the PA news agency, the BBC and other media identified the arrested man as Sturgeon’s husband. The SNP assured that it was working with the investigators and would continue to do so.
Murrell resigned as SNP CEO in mid-March. The background was that the SNP had initially denied a newspaper report according to which its membership had shrunk from more than 100,000 to around 70,000 in the past year, but then admitted that the report was correct. Murrell took responsibility and left.
Sturgeon surprisingly announced her resignation after eight years in mid-February. Critics accused the former prime minister of having too much power within the party in a close circle around her. Former Health Minister Humza Yousaf prevailed in the battle for her successor and was sworn in as the new head of government last week.
The SNP wants Scotland’s independence from Great Britain and wants to hold a referendum on this in October. The British government rejects this, referring to the 2014 referendum in which 55 percent of voters voted in favor of Scotland remaining in the United Kingdom.
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