Prosecutors investigating SNP fraud allegations are examining evidence that a fake company received payments for refurbishment work carried out on the party’s headquarters.
Costs of over £100,000 were said to be detailed on receipts for work on a “media suite” at their Edinburgh office.
But investigators have been probing information which suggests the company which received the payments never existed.
The Sunday Mail understands that almost £500,000 of potential embezzlement is now being considered in total by police with one of the biggest items relating to the work on the HQ on the capital’s Jackson’s Entry.
We can also reveal how:
– A major high street bank flagged suspicious transactions on accounts connected with the SNP last year and;
– Crown prosecutors have stepped up their investigation with movement on the case expected in the coming weeks.
A source said: “A bank flagged up large transactions on SNP related accounts to the police in 2023 which they wanted to query.
“The bank was acting in line with its legal duty. Often these things turn out to be perfectly innocent, someone is buying a house for example, but there is a process that has to be gone through.
“Contacting the police was a precursor to contacting the account holders to ask them to explain the transactions. However the police made it clear they were aware and no further action would be required from the bank.”
A second source said: “One of the biggest items being looked at is a six figure sum which on paper appears to have been spent creating a media suite at the Edinburgh offices.
“There are receipts but it is unclear whether the company named on receipts really existed.
“As things stand the total amount of potential embezzlement is around half a million pounds so this is very serious stuff.
“The police have handed over their findings to prosecutors and it is in their hands now. It is unlikely to be too much longer before we see movement on this, it is very much live, things are beginning to move quickly behind the scenes.
“Teams are up and running and independent counsel are reviewing all of the police findings.”
Accounts for 2020 show the SNP paid £615,000 on an office refurbishment of its rented premises.
Figures showed £615,270 of “tangible assets” were purchased in 2020, with £385,520 spent on additional furniture, fixtures and fittings, and £229,750 on office and computer equipment.
The Operation Branchform probe was initially focused on how cash raised in 2017 and 2019 as part of a referendum appeal has been spent.
Concerns were raised when SNP accounts showed there was less than £100,000 in the bank at the end of 2019, despite £600,000 being donated.
That sparked at least 19 criminal complaints. After the probe began, Murrell loaned the SNP £107,620 to help with “cash flow”.
The Sunday Mail revealed the accounts were under scrutiny in early 2021.
Police Scotland’s chief constable admitted in 2023 the investigation had “moved beyond” the initial inquiries of alleged fraud.
This wider probe is related to evidence of embezzlement.
Murrell and Sturgeon’s home was searched and police are investigating purchases believed to have been made with party cash.
Sturgeon, her husband and former SNP CEO Peter Murrell, and former treasurer Colin Beattie were all arrested and questioned as suspects.
Murrell, 59, was charged with the embezzlement of funds in April and Sturgeon and Beattie remain under investigation.
Jackie Baillie, Scottish Labour’s Deputy Leader, said: “These allegations are deeply concerning and it’s right that the police have investigated. The Crown Office need to determine the question of dishonesty and who should be charged.
“For too long, a culture of secrecy has flourished on the SNP’s watch – the public deserve transparency about how they have operated when Nicola Sturgeon and Peter Murrell were in charge.”
Scottish Conservative deputy chairwoman Pam Gosal MSP said: “This is just the latest shocking revelation in what has been a long-running case and murkiness surrounding the SNP’s finances is only continuing to grow.
“It is crucial that all figures within the SNP continue to co-operate with this investigation and are fully transparent at all times.”
In February last year, Sturgeon announced she would quit as first minister in February last year – the week before police started interviewing senior party officials.
Murrell stepped down from his position the following month after it emerged he had lied over a Sunday Mail story revealing 30,000 people had left the party.
Witnesses have been interviewed multiple times, including about whether a video uncovered by the Sunday Mail links Nicola Sturgeon to fraud claims.
On the tape, the ex-first minister raged that the SNP finances have “never been stronger”.
She said: “There are no reasons for people to be concerned about the party’s finances and all of us need to be careful about not suggesting that there is.”
We told in December how the purchase of a £95,000 Jaguar I-Pace SUV is also part of the investigation.
A car fitting the description of the Jaguar was pictured on Murrell and Sturgeon’s driveway in March 2021 but has since been sold.
A £110,000 camper van was seized from Murrell’s mum’s drive in Dunfermline last year as part of the investigation.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “On 9 August, 2024, we presented the findings of the investigation so far to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and we await their direction on what further action should be taken.”
The most recent accounts for last year came with a health warning from independent auditors, who offered a qualified opinion due to some financial paperwork being missing.
The accounts state that some “cash and cheques received, relating to membership, donations and raffle income were not kept by the Party prior to July 2023”.
The auditor added: “We have been unable to satisfy ourselves by alternative means regarding the completeness of income for the current and prior year in respect of the above limitation in scope.”
Leading Scottish criminal defence lawyer Thomas Leonard Ross KC insisted yesterday the Branchform investigation “cannot go on indefinitely”.
He said: “Once somebody is charged then they have the right to a trial within a reasonable time”.
An SNP spokeswoman said: “While the police investigation has reportedly been completed and passed over to the Crown Office, the case remains active and it would be inappropriate to comment on anonymised speculation, or about the party’s legal position.”
A spokesman for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service explained the process around their investigation: “Before deciding what action to take, if any, in the public interest, prosecutors will consider if there is enough evidence. There must be evidence from at least two separate sources to establish that a crime was committed and that the person under investigation was the perpetrator.
“This evaluation will involve a thorough examination of the numerous witness statements and extensive evidence collected by police. Prosecutors may instruct the police to conduct further investigations before taking a decision.
“Decisions on how to proceed are taken by prosecutors acting independently, and are based upon available evidence, legal principles, and the merits of each case. They are not influenced by political events.”
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