I’m being punished for a crime I did not commit — Nicola Sturgeon in tears as she speaks on ex-husband £400,000 embezzlement case

Former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has spoken emotionally about the criminal case involving her former husband, insisting that she should not be held responsible for his actions.

Sturgeon made the remarks during an interview with the BBC after her ex-husband, Peter Murrell, pleaded guilty to embezzling approximately £400,000 from the Scottish National Party (SNP) between 2010 and 2022.

According to reports, the 61-year-old admitted to misusing party funds on a range of personal purchases, including a motorhome, vehicles, luxury watches, pens, kitchen items, hand cream, and even toilet seats.

Murrell is expected to be sentenced in June, a month that will also see the SNP contest key by-elections in Aberdeen South and Arbroath and Broughty Ferry.

The case has intensified scrutiny of the party’s finances, with growing calls for an independent investigation into the SNP’s financial management.

Sturgeon served as Scotland’s First Minister from 2014 until 2023, while Murrell held the position of SNP chief executive from 2001 to 2023.

Speaking during the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, Sturgeon firmly rejected suggestions that she should apologise for crimes committed by her former husband.

She said: “For my own sake, but for the sake of people out there, a lot of women who end up finding themselves blamed for the actions of the men in their lives, I’m not going to contribute to that kind of sense that I am responsible for somebody else’s crimes.

“I will take responsibility for the things I do, the decisions I make. I’m sitting here with you right now, answering questions because I believe strongly in that accountability.

“But I am not responsible for the crimes that my former husband committed and I’m not going to apologise for somebody else’s crimes.”

Sturgeon went on to argue that she had also been affected by Murrell’s actions because the alleged misconduct occurred while she was leading the party.

“Murrell perpetrated a crime on the SNP,” she told the BBC.

“By definition, that included me as the party leader. He misled. He deceived.

“He is serving and will be serving a sentence for a crime he committed. I’m out here feeling as if I’m serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit.”