FORMER SNP chief executive Peter Murrell filed a £3500 silver wine coaster as a “leadership expense”, a £3000 robotic lawnmower as “legal fees”, and £9000 worth of watches as “event merchandise” during a 12-year embezzlement spree, prosecutors have revealed.
On Tuesday, Murrell appeared at Edinburgh High Court for a hearing in which the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) outlined the crimes to which he had pleaded guilty at a separate hearing on May 25.
A nine-page “narrative” document revealed how the former SNP executive – the estranged husband of former first minister Nicola Sturgeon – had embezzled funds for his own ends and concealed the activity with fake documents and accounting classifications.
The COPFS narrative stated that:
- Two Bremont watches from CW Sellors Jura costing £9,350.25 in total were recorded as “event merchandise”.
- A Smythson travel watch roll costing £332 was coded as “staff expenses” and described as “Double Tree The Glasgow City Hotel”.
- An OXO Good Grips 2‑piece silicone egg poacher set costing £23.98 was coded as “computer hardware purchases” and described as “Ethernet cabling”.
- A robotic lawnmower (including installation) for his home costing £3070 was misdescribed as spending on “legal fees”.
- A hand‑chased silver wine coaster from Hamilton & Inches costing £3500 was misdescribed as spending on “leadership expenses”, with the description “Hamilton & Inches sterling silver presentation quaiches”.
- A bogus fixed asset entry for £12,042 was created and described as an “Apple processor” to match a false Apple invoice, despite no such item being bought.
- An £81,277 Jaguar i‑Pace purchase had the true dealer name “Pentland Jaguar East” altered to “Pentland Motor Company Ltd”, the customer address was changed to SNP headquarters, and the payment presented under “transport” as a “stage payment” supposedly for SNP events.
- A Niesmann and Bischoff Smove 7.4e motorhome costing £124,550 (with £112,050 paid from SNP funds) had the invoice altered so the account name became “SNP – Murrell”, the address was changed to SNP HQ, and the description was changed from a motorhome to a van, with specification details stripped out before it was added to the party’s accounts and Fixed Asset Register.
The court heard Murrell embezzled £400,310.65 from the SNP’s principal bank account, “over which he had control”.
Reading out the prosecution narrative, Alan Cameron KC said the funds in that account came mainly from “membership fees and donations paid by party members and other donors and legacies”.
Cameron further said that when police seized the motorhome from Murrell’s mother’s house, the odometer showed it had only been driven for four miles.
He said it was described as a “van rather than a motorhome” when the invoice was filed, adding: “It was never used or seen by any other party member or employee.”
The advocate depute said police first received a complaint about potential mismanagement of the SNP’s finances in March 2021, and an investigation took place after further complaints were made.
He said: “It was during the course of that investigation that evidence of the accused’s embezzlement was uncovered and became a focus for further investigation.”
Elsewhere, the COPFS narrative document revealed that Murrell had first spoken to his legal team about entering a guilty plea on March 3, 2026, roughly two weeks after he had been due to make a plea in court on February 20. That initial hearing was delayed to May 25, by which time a guilty plea deal had been struck.
"The accused confirmed that he would plead guilty, and that plea was intimated to the Crown, on 21 May 2026," the document states.
Sentencing of Murrell, 61, is due to take place on June 23.
Murrell’s guilty plea has led to intense scrutiny for his estranged wife, former first minister Sturgeon, who has said she was “deceived, misled and betrayed”.
The former SNP leader has argued she was “completely exonerated” after a “two-year-long, very forensic police investigation” which saw police officers search the home she and Murrell had shared.
At the weekend, Sturgeon told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme she feels like she is “serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit”.
Former first minister Jack McConnell and the Tories' shadow Scottish secretary Andrew Bowie have both called for inquiries into the SNP in the wake of Murrell’s crimes.
However current SNP leader and First Minister John Swinney has said there is no need for such an inquiry, emphasising the detailed nature of the police investigation.
He said last week: “The police investigation has led to a criminal case. There has been a prosecution and there has been a guilty plea and there will be sentencing taking place as a consequence.
“So, all these issues have been looked at. We know what the problem was – the problem was criminal behaviour and the police have identified that and the individual involved has been prosecuted.”
