Swinney was told of Murrell charges weeks before they became public

First Minister John Swinney was given details of a criminal charge against former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell weeks before it became public.

Scotland's top law officer told Swinney on 19 January that Murrell had been accused of embezzling almost £460,000 from the party.

It was not until 13 February that details of the indictment were first published in the media.

Murrell, 61, is yet to make a plea, with a preliminary hearing scheduled for 25 May.

Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain - who has a dual role as the government's principal legal advisor, which she performs as a cabinet minister, and the country's chief prosecutor - notified Swinney in an email on 19 January that Murrell had been indicted that day.

The memo - first reported by the Scottish Sun and seen by BBC Scotland News - reiterated a "longstanding tradition" that the lord advocate would not be involved in decisions about a case involving a politician.

The email was passed on to senior civil servants and special advisers.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) said Bain had sent the memo to ensure transparency.

Swinney said: "This is a live criminal case and I'm not going to be making any comment on it.

"Parliament has got to be very clear about the importance of respecting the independence of the criminal process within our country, and within our courts, and I intend to respect that."

Murrell, the estranged husband of former first minister Nicola Sturgeon, stepped down as SNP chief executive in 2023 after more than two decades in the role.

He was arrested that year as part of Operation Branchform, a police investigation into SNP finances. He was charged with embezzlement in April 2024.

Murrell is accused of embezzling £459,000 from the party between August 2010 and January 2023.

Details of a charge against him - including the illicit purchase of luxury goods, two cars and a motorhome, using party funds - were first reported in the media last week.

Murrell had been expected to appear at the High Court in Glasgow for the preliminary hearing on Friday, but it has been postponed to 25 May at the High Court in Edinburgh.

The request to delay was made by Murrell's defence, according to the Times.

The Scottish government insisted it had no involvement in the decision to push back the hearing, which will now take place after the Holyrood election on 7 May.

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay has called for the lord advocate to explain to parliament why she sent the memo.

He said: "Why were the public kept in the dark while John Swinney was given a detailed private briefing which he then shared with civil servants and SNP spin doctors?

"An SNP minister has already denied any government meddling around delays to the case, but these new revelations will only fuel public suspicion and concern."

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said Bain's disclosure could give the SNP a "political advantage" ahead of the Holyrood election.

He called for the lord advocate's roles as a prosecutor and a government advisor to be severed.

Sarwar told BBC Scotland News: "I think there are serious questions for John Swinney and the lord advocate to answer."

Labour MSP Michael Marra is to ask the government in parliament why the lord advocate sent Swinney the email, and if any other information about the case has been sent to ministers or special advisers.

Defence lawyer Thomas Ross said he was "not entirely surprised" that Bain had informed Swinney about the case.

He told BBC Scotland News: "It is expected that the first minister may be asked questions in relation to proceedings so it's entirely right that the first minister should know the stage at which proceedings have reached."

Ross also said a delay to the preliminary hearing was "quite normal", especially in cases where there was a lot of paperwork, and said nothing about the case so far had been "murky".

He added: "The vast majority of cases have no political aspect to then whatsoever and most of them are postponed at the first preliminary hearing so there's nothing surprising really about it."

The COPFS said previously that Bain and her deputy, Solicitor General Ruth Charteris, were not involved in the Murrell case because it involves politicians.

A spokesperson for the COPFS said: "The lord advocate provided the first minister with an update to ensure it was understood she was not involved in the case, that it was active for contempt of court, and therefore it should not be commented upon.

"This message was sent formally after the indictment had been served in order to form part of the record and ensure transparency in due course.

"Once an indictment has been served on an accused it stands to become public at any point."