THE former senior law officer behind the doomed Rangers fraud prosecution was a Celtic shareholder, according to previously unpublished documents seen by the Herald on Sunday.
A detailed register of interest held by the Scottish Government — released to this paper under Freedom of Information legislation — reveals that Frank Mulholland held both ordinary and preferential shares in the club.
Tory MSP Russell Findlay said this could be of interest “to the long-awaited public inquiry.”
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The secret register dates between 2007 and 2011, during the SNP’s first term in office when Lord Mulholland was the solicitor general.
Details of how many shares the lawyer owned have been redacted, but the entry does say Celtic is a "passion" of his.
It goes on: “Not surprisingly with shares in a football club no dividends have been paid on the ordinary shares. A small payment is made in respect of the preferential shares which I hold. I have authorised that this payment should be retained by the club in lieu of additional shares. I do not own any other shares, nor do I hold any directorships.”
In the next register detailing ministers’ interests between 2011 and 2016, the shares were no longer on the entry of Lord Mulholland, then the Lord Advocate. It’s not clear if that’s because the shares were sold or if he no longer believed it was necessary to register them.
Details of the shares were never published on the law officer’s Scottish Parliament register, which is public.
However, under the Scottish Ministerial Code, ministers “must provide the Permanent Secretary with a full list in writing of all interests which might be thought to give rise to a conflict in relation to their Ministerial office.”
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Lord Mulholland sanctioned the arrest of seven men following a fraud investigation into the administration and subsequent takeover of Rangers in 2012.
Those arrested included David Whitehouse and Paul Clark, the two men appointed administrators when the company that ran Rangers went into administration in 2012.
All charges were later dropped.
The Crown has since said their prosecution was "malicious" and both men were awarded £10.5m each in damages, plus substantial legal costs.
Former chief executive Charles Green Green has since received more than £6m in compensation plus legal costs in an out-of-court settlement.
Former director Imran Ahmad has lodged a damages claim of £60m.
Only Mr Whyte ever faced trial and he was subsequently cleared.
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Lord Mulholland’s successor as Lord Advocate, James Wolffe was later forced to apologise to parliament.
A judge-led inquiry into the matter is due to take place once outstanding legal proceedings have concluded.
Last year, the Crown Office told the Scottish Parliament's Criminal Justice Committee that costs had increased to "just under £51m".
Lord Mulholland’s time as Lord Advocate came to an end in 2016, and he was appointed a Senator of the College of Justice, shortly after.
Tory MSP Russell Findlay said: "What's not known from this register is whether Frank Mulholland sold his Celtic shares upon becoming Lord Advocate or ceased to continue declaring them.
"Even if he disposed of them, his self-declared Celtic 'passion' is relevant.
“As Lord Advocate he had overall responsibility for these catastrophic and costly prosecutions relating to his club's greatest rivals.
"We already know that the lead detective in this case is a Rangers supporter and that a sheriff who signed 22 separate warrants and submitted a misleading report was a Rangers shareholder.
"It seems likely that these personal football affiliations will be of interest to the long-awaited public inquiry, key details of which are still not forthcoming from SNP ministers."
Lord Mulholland was approached for comment.
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