Police have launched an investigation after a litany of serious sexual abuse allegations against former SNP chief Jordan Linden. Five men, two of whom have given statements to detectives, detail claims of sex attacks, child grooming and sexual harrassment, some recent and others that date back eight years.
Former North Lanarkshire council boss Linden, promoted and protected by SNP before being exposed by the Sunday Mail, could face jail. And top -ranking officials in party headquarters will also face questions by officers over a catalogue of complaints. First Minister Humza Yousaf finally admitted victims had been failed when questioned by this paper.
He was on a planned visit to Bellshill ahead of the by-election after the seat was left vacant by Linden’s resignation earlier this year. The vote on June 15 will be his first electoral test since becoming First Minister.
Yousaf said an investigation into those senior SNP HQ figures who may have covered up or ignored the claims about the ex-council boss was underway and said he would make public the findings of the investigation.
Those who are alleged to have been informed of concerns about Linden include ex-Chief Executive Peter Murrell, SNP compliance officer Ian McCann, business convener Kirsten Oswald MP and current SNP North Lanarkshire group leader Tracey Carragher.
Yousaf said: “The party absolutely has a responsibility for wellbeing for individuals. We’re absolutely holding our hands up... things of course could have been handled better. We’ve already said that we will investigate. That investigation has started and we’ll let you know the outcome...but anything of a criminal nature of course has to be investigated by the police.”
Asked if the SNP protected sexual predators, he said “no” and claimed voters could still rely on his party in North Lanarkshire. Linden’s offending is alleged to have taken place over several years and includes child grooming, sexual assault and sexual harassment claims.
SNP HQ are facing questions over why claims from a teenage boy were ignored for years while other complainers were ostracised and sidelined after raising concerns. Linden, 29, has been reported to officers over allegations he pounced on a man during a trip abroad.
Another man has also come forward to ask officers to investigate Linden’s behaviour at the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) while at least three others are planning to speak with investigators next week.
Councillor Cammie McManus made the decision to speak to the police after trying to raise concerns through the SNP, only to have senior HQ officials ignore him and discipline him and his colleagues who supported him.
Jack O’Hara, a former SYP member who as waived his right to anonmity, has also contacted officers. He was just 14 when Linden, who was 21 at the time, sent him semi-nude images and sexually explicit messages.
Meghan Gallacher MSP, Deputy Leader of the Scottish Conservatives, said: “The fact that this has now become a police investigation only underlines the shameful failures of the SNP in dealing with complaints about Jordan Linden, who had to resign in disgrace.
“As in the Patrick Grady case, when Ian Blackford rowed in behind the perpetrator rather than the victim, their first thought was to close ranks to protect their party, rather than support the complainants. The SNP are mired in scandal nationally and their group in North Lanarkshire have serious questions to answer. We must hope the police investigation gets to the truth about this disgraceful affair.”
Scottish Labour business manager Martin Whitfield MSP said: “These are serious allegations, and the police must be given the time and space to investigate them fully. It is clear that a number of institutions - most clearly the SNP - will have questions to answer, and they should do so fully.”
Meanwhile Linden’s allies in North Lanarkshire council have been voted back into senior positions last week despite claims they persecuted complainers and protected their former leader. Carragher was re-elected as the SNP’s group leader although she faces claims that she ignored Cammie’s report of harassment against Linden as far back as last August. She denies the claims.
Cammie confirmed to the Sunday Mail that he had spoken to police about Linden’s attack on him while on a trip to Barcelona in 2016. He said: “I’m limited in what I can say as there’s now an ongoing investigation, and I’ve been advised not to make any public comment.”
A friend of Cammie added: “The SNP should have taken this issue seriously from the beginning but instead they have ignored, protected and covered up for Jordan Linden. That needs to end and Humza Yousaf and Nicola Sturgeon should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this to perpetuate under their watch. Victims should be listened to, not ignored.”
A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Officers are investigating a report of a sexual assault incident having taken place in 2017. Enquiries are at an early stage and ongoing.”
Other SNP councillors who complained about Linden have been punished for speaking out, with some even expelled from the party. Linden was finally forced to resign as North Lanarkshire Council leader last year after abuse allegations against him were uncovered by the Sunday Mail.
SNP HQ furiously briefed against our story and even told other news outlets we were being reported to press regulators in a bid to stop them following up the revelations. The scandal has caused the SNP to lose power to Labour on the council, led to a major split between members and has seen 11 councillors quit the party in the last year.
The latest to leave was Jim Hume, who quit on Tuesday to join seven others as a new independent group. They have announced today they are to launch a new political party - Progressive Change North Lanarkshire.
An SNP spokesman said: “Mr Linden is not an SNP member. We have been very clear that any allegation of criminality is for the police to look into, not a political party.” Linden said: “As I have outlined before, and I do so again, I do not accept the allegations that are being made.”
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