John Swinney was told to condemn police chief Jo Farrell’s “callous” handling of the botched investigation into Nairn banker Alistair Wilson’s murder.
Mr Wilson’s family were left furious this week when the under-fire chief constable said a new detective assigned to lead the case was “working now”, despite being on holiday.
The married father-of-two was shot dead by a lone gunman on his doorstep in Nairn on November 28, 2004.
Nearly 20 years on, not a single arrest has been made.
A “complete reinvestigation” has been ordered into the case after police angered the Wilsons by scrapping plans to arrest a suspect last May.
Mr Wilson’s son Andrew, aged just four when his father died, told the Press and Journal Ms Farrell had been “caught in a lie” after her latest comments to the media.
Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross read out his statement during First Minister’s Questions, asking whether Mr Swinney agreed.
The first minister offered his sympathies to the Wilson family and shared his “frustration” that the case has not been solved.
The SNP leader “welcomed” that a fresh police probe has been ordered, but swerved any direct criticism of the chief constable.
He said: “Mr Ross will appreciate that the police operate with absolute operational independence from the government.
“It would be inappropriate of me to indicate any opinion on the stance taken by the chief constable.
“It is a matter for the chief constable to address.
“Certainly the first minister should not be indicating to the chief constable what actions she should be taking with a live investigation.”
But Mr Ross, a Highlands and Islands MSP, claimed the Scottish Government was not powerless.
Police response ‘falls below any standard we should expect’
He told Mr Swinney: “The response from Police Scotland is one that clearly falls below any standard we should expect.
Andrew Wilson’s full statement read: “It remains a mystery to us, and we question why our family is still being kept in the dark while Jo Farrell is basking in the media spotlight as she talks of building bridges and providing confidence to our family.
“We don’t know whether Jo Farrell has been confused or perhaps even caught in a lie, but she has certainly failed to reassure us that she has a grip on this worsening situation.”
Mr Wilson’s widow Veronica, 53, said the family was told by a liaison officer on Tuesday that a replacement for the investigation had not been appointed.
She said she was “baffled” by Ms Farrell’s claim that a new team of detectives were busy with the case.
The Wilsons said on Saturday that their trust in the police leadership had been “eroded” due to a “lack of accountability”.
A police spokesperson told The Press and Journal: “The chief constable was referencing the Strategic Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Superintendent Suzanne Chow, who was in contact with the family last week via family liaison officers.
“A Senior Investigating Officer has also been appointed and the wider team, which will take forward the reinvestigation, is being identified.
“The family have been kept updated on this work.”
Family had to chase police for updates
But Mr Wilson’s family further disputed the claims by Police Scotland.
They revealed that, although Family Liaison Officers contacted them last week, as the police claimed, they were not informed about Detective Chief Superintendent (DCS) Suzanne Chow’s involvement by the police at that time.
The Wilsons said DCS Chow’s role was only confirmed by the police to them during a phone call on Tuesday chasing Family Liaison Officers for an update.
However, it came after retired detective and TV personality Peter Bleksley had already posted about DCS Chow on social media platform X two days before.
In the coming months, the senior police figure responsible for all Major Crime Teams investigating murders across Scotland, Detective Chief Superintendent Paul Livingstone will face disciplinary proceedings.
It follows serious matters raised by the Wilson family including one upheld complaint of misconduct by DCS Livingstone embroiled in events surrounding the aborted arrest.
