The Albany Gazette - Ex-Scottish leader Sturgeon cleared in funds probe

Former SNP leader Sturgeon and former party treasurer Colin Beattie were both arrested in 2023 but never charged.

"Following direction from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, criminal inquiries into two people arrested as part of the investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party have now concluded," said Police Scotland.

"The 73 year-old man arrested on April 18 2023, and the 54 year-old woman arrested on June 11 2023, have not been charged and are no longer under investigation."

Sturgeon's ex-partner Peter Murrell, the former SNP chief executive, appeared in court in Edinburgh on Thursday charged in connection with the alleged embezzlement of party funds.

Sturgeon announced earlier this year that the couple had "decided to end" their marriage.

The former leader announced last week that she will step down as a lawmaker next year, ending a near 30-year career as one of the independence movement's main figureheads.

Sturgeon was among the first group of MSPs (Members of the Scottish Parliament) elected to the Holyrood legislative in 1999, as Scotland got its own parliament again after almost 300 years.

She became deputy first minister in 2007 after her former mentor Alex Salmond led the SNP to power for the first time, defeating Labour.

Sturgeon then succeeded Salmond as first minister in 2014 after he quit following a referendum in which Scots narrowly voted against the country becoming independent from the rest of the UK.

She went on to become the longest-serving first minister in Scotland's history and led the country's response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

But despite the SNP winning further elections in Edinburgh, Sturgeon was unable to secure another referendum and the independence movement stalled.

After she resigned, support for the SNP slumped as it became involved in the funding scandal.

(P.Clark--TAG)