Prosecutors have denied that items were removed from the indictment against Peter Murrell to spare Nicola Sturgeon from embarrassment. The denial came after a complaint by activist Sean Clerkin, whose 2021 report to Police Scotland sparked the Operation Branchform investigation.
Plea Deal Removed £59,000 of Items
Murrell, the former SNP chief executive and estranged husband of Nicola Sturgeon, agreed to plead guilty to an amended indictment that saw nearly £60,000 of purchases removed from the charge sheet. The removed items included women's vanity products such as £886 worth of Studio Fix foundation, a £300 Dyson hairdryer, and £175 on Nike tracksuits. Also deleted were 16 over-mirror lights totalling £582, two motion-sensor makeup mirrors worth £480, and nine makeup organisers costing £116.
Murrell was initially due to enter a plea on February 20, but the hearing was delayed until after the Holyrood election on May 7. In early March, his lawyers began negotiations with prosecutors, resulting in more than 700 items worth £58,735 being removed from the indictment. He was later jailed for five years and five months after admitting to embezzling more than £400,000 from the SNP over 12 years.
Crown Office Response to Activist
Sean Clerkin wrote to the Crown Office after Murrell's guilty plea in May, asking why so many purchases were removed. In an email seen by the Record, he asked: "Is it the case that the £59,000 worth of goods were removed from the charge sheet to spare Nicola Sturgeon any embarrassment? Is it the case that other embarrassing items were deleted from the charges and what were they?"
Clerkin concluded: "I believe that there needs to complete transparency and accountability here as the court of public opinion is demanding answers to the above questions and they need to be answered now."
In response, a Crown Office spokesperson said: "On March 3, 2026, Peter Murrell instructed his legal representatives to explore resolution of his case by way of a guilty plea. Discussions continued over the following weeks because of the length of the schedules relating to the embezzlement and the detail of the plea ultimately agreed. On May 21, the accused confirmed to the Crown that he would plead guilty.
"The Crown considered the plea offered and accepted that it secured a conviction for serious criminal conduct and provided a proper basis for sentencing without the need for a lengthy trial at great public expense. On May 25, amendments were made to the schedule of purchases, and the charge remained one of embezzlement.
"Your suggestion that items were deleted to save any person embarrassment is entirely wrong and played no part of the Crown’s thinking. Prosecutorial decisions are taken entirely independently."
Activist's Reaction
Clerkin told the Record: "The response by the Crown Office on the plea agreement reached with the common thief Peter Murrell is very disappointing. To state, as they do, that the near £59,000 of mostly women’s items that were dropped from the embezzlement charges was not done to spare Nicola Sturgeon embarrassment beggars belief."
The home shared by Murrell and Sturgeon was searched by police over two days in April 2023. The former first minister was questioned by detectives in June that year but was later told she would face no further action.
