She had been detained and interrogated for over seven hours as part of an anti-corruption operation
Nicola Sturgeon was questioned “as a suspect” by investigators from the Scottish National Party over financial misconduct.
The former prime minister and SNP leader was arrested by police on Sunday morning but was later released without charge pending further investigation. It was she herself who voluntarily went to a police station.
In a statement Sunday night, Sturgeon said her arrest came as a shock: “I am deeply saddened,” adding, “I know I am innocent.”
She is the third leading SNP figure involved in Operation Branchform, an investigation by Scotland’s police force that alleges she embezzled £600,000 in donations to her party for the referendum campaign.
Sturgeon was held and questioned by investigators for more than seven hours before being released from custody. Now she appears to have taken refuge in an undisclosed location away from her home in Uddingston, on the outskirts of Glasgow.