POLICE Scotland’s “Operation Branchform” investigation into the SNP’s finances has concluded, an updated statement from the force has indicated.
In September last year, the police handed an advice and guidance report to prosecutors in the Crown Office. Confirming this, the force said it had “presented the findings of the investigation so far to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service [italics added]”.
This comment was repeated to media through the tail end of 2024, but has now been updated. The Police Scotland line since January 2025 has been: "On August 9, 2024, we presented the findings of the investigation to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS).”
The removal of two key words – “so far” – imply that the police investigation into the SNP has come to an end, leading Scottish defence KC Thomas Leonard Ross told the Sunday National.
“I think that's a reasonable inference, that the police take the view that they've passed over the entire product of the investigation to the Crown Office,” he said. “I think that's the message they’re communicating.”
SNP MSP James Dornan called for clarity from law enforcement.
“If, as is suggested by the most recent form of wording, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal have received all the findings of the investigation then surely, in the interests of justice and fairness, it is incumbent on Police Scotland, the Crown Office and the Procurators Fiscal to make a clear and precise statement about where we are with this extensively delayed investigation,” he said.
However, Ross said that Police Scotland’s updated statement did not necessarily mean that the investigation as a whole had concluded.
“If we're right to infer that the police investigation is over, it's possible that other people will be doing work which the public would regard as investigation, and that the prosecution can't proceed until they've got that report,” the KC said.
“There's nothing unusual about that either. The Crown Office can instruct further investigation, and it won't always involve the police.
“It might be that the Crown has obtained the police report and instructed a forensic accountant to look at certain aspects. Then they have to wait until the forensic accountant has done the work.”
Last week, the Crown Office said that there was an ongoing investigation “being handled by professional prosecutors from COPFS and independent counsel”.
The statement came in response to a claim from Colin Sutherland, Lord Carloway (who is stepping down from his role as Lord President – Scotland's most senior judge – on Monday), that there has been a "hold-up" with Operation Branchform.
The police investigation officially began in July 2021, following a complaint in March that year about what had happened to some £600,000 raised by the party for a second independence referendum campaign.
Asked if the intense media interest and political nature of the probe may be prompting the Crown Office to move more carefully and therefore more slowly, Ross said: “Well, there's certainly no evidence that it's motivated them to speed things up.”
However, the KC said he had wondered about Carloway’s intervention.
“I wondered about that word [hold-up],” he said. “That suggests that nothing's happening. A hold-up means you've been stopped, doesn't it?
“I don't think there's any evidence that it's been stopped. I think it's just that everything takes time at the Crown Office. There's nothing really that surprising about it.
“It's just moving slowly, and there can be reasons for that.”
Ross added: “It doesn't surprise me if it's moving slowly because I wouldn't want them taking staff off murder cases and sexual abuse cases just to please the many people who are obsessed with Operation Branchform.”
Police Scotland says it submitted its investigation’s findings last August, meaning February marks the sixth month since it landed on the Crown Office’s desks.
Asked if that was a normal timescale for the Crown Office to examine a fraud probe, Ross said: “I would have thought if they did anything within a year it would be surprising.
“If it's six months for a simple fraud, 12 months for something complicated doesn't seem unlikely.
“I know that they can take years before there's any activity, so it doesn't seem an unreasonable estimate."
“They took her in, they released her without charge, then went back and charged somebody else.
“In the absence of any contrary information, there's absolutely no basis for thinking she's going to be charged.
“In addition, it was reported the Crown Office are taking steps to inhibit the sale of the house [which she shared with Murrell].
“Now, she has an interest in the sale of the house, but they didn't inhibit her. They didn't make any application to inhibit her from selling the house.
“They could have … but they didn't do that.
“If it was two people to be prosecuted and they had a joint interest in the house, the proceedings to inhibit the house would be taken against both people, which in a way kind of gives weight to it.”
Police Scotland said it did not have any further comment to add.
