London Thanasis Gavos

She declares her innocence in a statement posted on Twitter by the former Prime Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeonfollowing her arrest on Sunday as part of the investigation into possible embezzlement of money in the Scottish National Party (SNP)while she was president herself.

Ms Sturgeon was arrested shortly after 10am after going to a police station for a pre-arranged statement.

Although police consider her a suspect in the case, she was released without charge after seven hours of questioning.

In her statement, the 52-year-old politician states that her arrest caused “shock and deep disturbance“, especially since she is “certain” that she has not committed any wrongdoing.

She expresses gratitude for those who have faith in her and knows she would not do “anything that would harm either the SNP or the country”.

“Innocence is not just a presumption to which I am entitled by law. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am indeed innocent of any wrongdoing,” notes Ms Sturgeon.

She says that after a short break she will return to her duties in Scotland’s local parliament, Holyrood. However, her successor Hamza Yousaf is under pressure to remove her from the parliamentary group while the police investigation continues.

The investigation into the SNP’s finances began in 2021 and is focused on the handling of £600,000 collected from donations from party supporters to boost the campaign for Scottish independence from the UK.

It is alleged that money from this sum was used for other expenses, including a caravan worth £110,000, which was located at the home of Ms Sturgeon’s mother-in-law.

The other two SNP finance chiefs, the party’s former chief executive Peter Murrell, who is Ms Sturgeon’s husband, and former treasurer Colin Beattie, were also arrested on suspicion weeks ago and have been released without charge over the time.