Nicola Sturgeon has said she was 'deceived, betrayed and lied to' by her estranged husband, Peter Murrell, after he embezzled more than £400,000 from the Scottish National Party (SNP). The former first minister made the remarks at Listowel Writers' Week in Ireland, her first public appearance since Murrell pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh.
Murrell, 61, was remanded in custody after admitting to embezzling £400,310.65 from the SNP between 2010 and 2022. The funds were used to purchase a motorhome, cars, expensive watches and a telescope. Sturgeon, 55, who was not charged following a police investigation, said she had been 'completely exonerated' after a two-year forensic inquiry.
Speaking about her marriage, Sturgeon said she was coming to terms with having spent years with someone she 'did not know at all'. She described the week as 'probably the worst' of her life and acknowledged that people would question how she could not have known about the embezzlement. 'I think underlying that question there is a big misassumption, which is that I knew anything about it,' she said.
Sturgeon stressed that she had fully cooperated with Police Scotland, following her lawyer's advice during a stressful interview. She later provided a detailed written response to police questions and heard nothing for two years until being cleared. The former SNP leader said she wanted people to hear her side of the story, accepting there are questions.
