17/12/2007
Sheridan Pleads Innocence Following Perjury Charge
Former socialist MSP Tommy Sheridan has insisted that he will clear his name after being charged with perjury following a police inquiry into his defamation case against the 'News of the World' newspaper.
Mr Sheridan was arrested in Edinburgh after he finished his weekly radio show on Talk107 on Sunday and he was taken to Gayfield police station, where he was questioned for eight hours before he was charged with perjury.
His home in the Cardonald area of Glasgow was also searched and his wife Gail was cautioned by officers.
Speaking to reporters as he left the police station, Mr Sheridan said that he would clear his name and said that he was "the victim of a political witch hunt", which had been "orchestrated and influenced by the powerful reach of the Murdoch empire".
Mr Sheridan won his case against the News of the World in August 2006. He had brought the case following allegations made by the newspaper into his private life, and he was awarded £200,000 in damages.
During the trial, several members of the Scottish Socialist Party gave evidence against him, which led to Mr Sheridan forming the rival party Solidarity.
However, neither he nor his former colleagues were returned to Holyrood in the May 2007 elections.
Two months after the trial concluded, prosecution authorities ordered police to investigate allegations of perjury during the case.
At the time, the News of the World said that it planned to appeal against the verdict - a decision which was postponed until the investigation into perjury allegation was resolved. They have not commented on the perjury charge against Mr Sheridan.
(KMcA)
Mr Sheridan was arrested in Edinburgh after he finished his weekly radio show on Talk107 on Sunday and he was taken to Gayfield police station, where he was questioned for eight hours before he was charged with perjury.
His home in the Cardonald area of Glasgow was also searched and his wife Gail was cautioned by officers.
Speaking to reporters as he left the police station, Mr Sheridan said that he would clear his name and said that he was "the victim of a political witch hunt", which had been "orchestrated and influenced by the powerful reach of the Murdoch empire".
Mr Sheridan won his case against the News of the World in August 2006. He had brought the case following allegations made by the newspaper into his private life, and he was awarded £200,000 in damages.
During the trial, several members of the Scottish Socialist Party gave evidence against him, which led to Mr Sheridan forming the rival party Solidarity.
However, neither he nor his former colleagues were returned to Holyrood in the May 2007 elections.
Two months after the trial concluded, prosecution authorities ordered police to investigate allegations of perjury during the case.
At the time, the News of the World said that it planned to appeal against the verdict - a decision which was postponed until the investigation into perjury allegation was resolved. They have not commented on the perjury charge against Mr Sheridan.
(KMcA)
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Three Year Jail Term For Tommy Sheridan
A former member of the Scottish Parliament has been sentenced to three years in prison for perjury. Tommy Sheridan's plea for leniency for the sake of his family was rejected. The former Scottish Socialist Party leader, 46, accused the media of "baying" for the judge to make an example of him.
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