Peter Murrell embezzlement trial

[Sunnnyday]

Peter Murrell is in court in Edinburgh today. This is for the preliminary hearing which was postponed from before the election. It will be interesting to see how the criminal proceedings proceed.

www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/peter-murrell-arrives-at-court-ahead-of-hearing-on-embezzlement-charges/ar-AA23Ybuy?ocid=msedgntp&pc

The whole £650K? Or is that still to be determined?

It's still to be determined, I believe.

Is this the money that NS said was “woven into the accounts” ?

That's my understanding. (Was it not Swinney that said that, however?)

Found it. It was the treasurer, backing Sturgeon when she said the money was not missing.:

www.thenational.scot/news/19349553.nicola-sturgeon-denies-600-000-gone-missing-snp-accounts/

As a Scottish person I find it astounding that the SNP allowed this to happen, no effective audit or scrutiny etc yet we've just voted them straight back in. They can't manage their own accounts so who knows what goes on with the national finances.

Also wonder how much disappeared that hasn't been evidenced in the court case, can't imagine he started out using the corporate credit card until he reached the 'getting cocky' stage.

ah, maybe, I just recall the phrase

Jeez, it’s all so sleazy

Scotland should be better than this

I managed to find it. I was wrong - not Swinney - it was the then treasurer, backing Sturgeon.

Should be better. But it’s getting so bad. Decline rapidly accelerated after the post referendum election where a donkey wearing an SNP rosette could get elected.
The calibre of elected SNP MPs and MSPs was truly shocking - think Douglas Alexander losing out to Mhairi Black, Margaret Ferrier, James Dornan, Emma Harper, John Mason FFS! The list goes on….I mean Humza was seen as an elder statesman 🤦‍♀️

People who were ill qualified and incapable of doing these jobs suddenly got a fat pay cheque and rewarded for incompetence. It’s now seen as a gravy train for every activist, regardless of their
actual skills. Think Sally Donald, Iona Fyfe et al. If Scotland doesn’t get its shit together these neds will be in charge of the lot in not too many years to come. Actually terrifying.

Perhaps mentioned up thread but I believe the police could only go back so many years. Hence the cap at the £400k odd figure.

is there any truth to the rumour that it was a wealthy ( now ex) benefactor that the SNP fell out with , who blew the whistle?

Colin Beattie, a former banker and SNP politician.

Yes Colin “international banker for 20 years” Beattie.

Yet, as as treasurer of the SNP, couldn’t see the scam going on right under his nose, and signed off the accounts anyway….

Aye, very good.

@IsThisEverOkay00 believe it was Sean Clerkin, a Bam’s Bam of the Indy movement who actually got frustrated with the lack of speed for a second referendum and started questioning the whereabouts of the fighting fund.

Hoisted by their own petard…

His Wiki page is remarkably thin about his life and career, given this illustrious banking career in Asia, the Middle East and London followed a move into politics and subsequent notoriety.

i think the figure is much more.

Who blew the whistle?

posted on the wrong thread

Hope Swinney gets looked in to as well.

Makes you wonder if Murrell et al ever seriously anticipated having to fund a future independence referendum at all?

Murrell seems to have written the money off in his head, and used it to fund his shopping habit.

Was he an addict? Is this going to be his pre-sentencing mitigation?

This is a really interesting thread about how Sturgeon and Swinney lying about other aspects of SNP finances helped to cover up Murrell’s embezzling.

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/2059562495967113374.html

Yep! I said earlier Swinney needs looking into...

its the stagecoach family the snp fell out with, isn't it?

There was also a lottery winner, I recall.

I wonder who is advising Nicola Sturgeon. The more statements she release the guiltier she looks.

I wonder if he will do a Huw Edwards and blame his father or something similar.

I see on Twitter that she was asked about the fancy pens in 2022 and the answer was that they were “gifts from a relative”