Alex Salmond cleared of attempted rape and series of sexual assaults

Former SNP leader suggests he will release further evidence in future to clear his name

Former first minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond, has been cleared of attempted rape and a series of sexual assaults, including one with intent to rape.

The High Court jury in Edinburgh returned not guilty verdicts on 12 charges and returned a not proven verdict on a charge of sexual assault with intent to rape.

Mr Salmond had denied all the charges – and when giving evidence claimed some of the allegations were "deliberate fabrications for a political purpose".

The 65-year-old politician was first arrested and charged by Police Scotland in relation to the allegations in January 2019.

Outside court, the former leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) said: "There is certain evidence that I would have liked to have seen led in this trial but for a variety of reasons we were not able to do so."

He added: "Those facts will see the light but it won't be this day."

Mr Salmond said the "nightmare" he had been through was nothing compared to the nightmare Scotland faced due to the UK's coronavirus outbreak.

"People are dying, many more are going to die," he said as he left the trial.

"My strong advice to you is to go home and those who are able take care of your families and God help us all."

Jackson Carlaw, the Scottish Conservative leader, said “some very serious questions” still needed to be answered by the SNP and Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, following the verdicts.

“This remains a national political scandal with profound questions of integrity for the first minister and her SNP government,” Mr Carlaw said.

“However, that opportunity must be deferred for the time being while all our efforts and resources concentrate on Covid-19.”

Joanna Cherry, an SNP MP, said there needed to be an independent inquiry in due course into how her party dealt with allegations against Mr Salmond.

"Those of us who know him, and indeed many of the thousands of people who have met him over the years, did not recognise the man described in the evidence," Ms Cherry said in a statement.

Additional reporting by PA