THE outgoing chief constable of Police Scotland has said the sooner the investigation into SNP finances is over, the better.
Speaking to the BBC, Sir Iain Livingstone said the two-year long investigation was “entirely legitimate”.
Over the course of the investigation, Nicola Sturgeon, Peter Murrell and Colin Beattie have all been arrested and released without charge.
After her release, Sturgeon (below) released a statement in which she said she was certain that she had done nothing wrong.
Livingstone said: “We are duty bound to investigate matters if they are reported to us.
“Our action and our investigation is in the interests of everybody involved because it will clarify facts and deal with evidence and facts as opposed to rumour and innuendo.
“So the sooner this investigation is concluded, the better for everyone involved.”
However, Livingstone did not put a timescale on when the investigation would conclude.
“It has to take its course. We will continue to work very closely with independent prosecutors and matters will progress in due course”, he said.
Police first confirmed they were investigating complaints made around donations to the SNP in July 2021.
We previously revealed how the total cost of the probe into party finances exceeds the allegedly missing amount which is under investigation.
It has been reported that £600,000 went “missing” from party coffers.
At the end of July, the Daily Record reported that detectives had not reported any cases for prosecution.
