Background of the 2019 Shetland Jewellery Visit
In 2019, during a by-election campaign visit to Shetland Jewellery, Nicola Sturgeon's husband, Peter Murrell, told the shop owner he was "the man with the money." At that time, Murrell was the chief executive of the Scottish National Party (SNP), while Sturgeon was the party leader and Scotland's first minister.
During this visit, Murrell purchased a 9ct gold pendant depicting the Northern Lights for Sturgeon.
Details of the Pendant Purchase
Kenneth Rae, the owner of Shetland Jewellery, recalled the visit on 28 July 2019. He said:
"They came in and then Peter Murrell said, while his wife was in the workshop area, 'I'm the man with the money. I need to buy something'."
Rae described how Murrell browsed through the stock and selected a pendant called the Mirrie Dancer Drongs. This pendant illustrates the sea stacks off the coast of Hillswick, with the "mirrie dancer" Northern Lights illuminating the sky above.
Rae added,
"We were happy he wanted to buy something... as far as I can remember it was about £850."
However, court documents listed the pendant next to a figure of £425.
The Pendant's Public Appearances
Nicola Sturgeon was seen wearing the pendant necklace on multiple occasions during the summer of 2019 and also in the chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
Rae commented on this, saying,
"Nicola did wear that pendant quite often and you can see it on television and we're very popular of the fact that she was wearing a bit of Shetland Jewellery."
Investigation and Police Involvement
Several years after the purchase, Police Scotland flew officers to Shetland to take statements as part of an investigation into allegations of embezzlement of SNP funds.
Rae expressed surprise at the police visit, stating,
"We were surprised to hear that two policemen were coming up to Shetland to interview us specially about our sale of a gold pendant to Peter Murrell."
He added,
"They were flown up from Glasgow at enormous expense and interviewed the people in the workshop and wrote down all the evidence they could gather and went away again."
Murrell's Admission and Court Proceedings
At the High Court in Edinburgh, 61-year-old Peter Murrell admitted to embezzling more than £400,000 from the SNP between August 2010 and October 2022. He pleaded guilty to illicitly purchasing numerous items, including luxury goods, jewellery, cosmetics, two cars, and a motorhome.
Nicola Sturgeon's Response
Following her estranged husband's guilty plea, Nicola Sturgeon issued a social media statement expressing her emotions and perspective on the situation. She said she was "angry, hurt, sad and very distressed," describing the event as a "profound personal trauma."
She stated,
"To be deceived and let down by a husband I loved and trusted has caused me acute pain. Why he acted as he did is, and always will be, beyond my comprehension."
Sturgeon emphasized that she was fully cleared after a thorough investigation, underlining that the crimes were not hers and that she had been misled just as others were.
In a subsequent statement released by her lawyer, Aamer Anwar, she clarified her lack of awareness regarding many of the high-value items Murrell purchased, saying,
"In respect of any items I was aware of Peter having purchased, I had no reason to doubt that he had used his own money.
We were both earning high salaries and, due to the responsibilities of my job, rarely socialised or went on holidays.
We had separate bank accounts and I had no access to his financial records."
Current Status
Peter Murrell has been remanded in custody and is scheduled to be sentenced next month.
