THREE Scottish Conservatives, including the party's former leader, have been questioned by police as part of a corruption investigation in the United States.
David McLetchie and ex-Tory MSP Brian Monteith, were interviewed about a dinner they attended with a Republican Congressman and his associates.
The Lothian and Borders Police probe is part of a US Justice Department inquiry into an alleged "trips for votes" scandal involving lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
US authorities want details of a trip Abramoff made to the UK five years ago, when he was accompanied by his commercial clients and former House majority leader Tom DeLay.
Part of the visit included a golfing trip to St Andrews, where the US delegation dined with a small group of senior Tories, including McLetchie and Monteith.
Prosecutors are examining whether the trip to the UK, which was paid for by Conservative groups close to Abramoff, was part of a concerted attempt to influence Republican senators.
DeLay is reported to have accepted a dollars-120,000 (pounds-68,000) all-expenses trip to the UK that included a stay in London's dollars-790-a-night Four Season's Hotel and a dollars-5000 golfing spree at St Andrews.
Interest in the junket was heightened last week when Abramoff pled guilty to corruption charges as part of a plea bargain to help the Washington investigation.
The St Andrews inquiry was triggered when the Crown Office recently received a request for "mutual legal assistance" from US federal authorities to gather evidence on the dinner.
Officials in Edinburgh passed the case to Lothian and Borders Police, who have since questioned the Scottish Tories who attended the event.
A spokesman for the Edinburgh-based force confirmed that McLetchie and two other Conservatives had been "interviewed" before Christmas as part of the corruption probe. "Lothian and Borders Police have been carrying out enquiries on behalf of the Crown Office, " he said.
Monteith, who quit the party after he was caught calling on McLetchie to resign as leader, confirmed his discussions with police and defended the dinner. He said: "I have been in contact with Lothian and Borders. It was entirely appropriate for leading Conservatives to welcome Congressman DeLay, share dinner with him and mull over the political situation in America and Scotland."
The Sunday Herald understands that the controversial dinner took place in 2000 at Strathtyrum House, a retreat on the outskirts of St Andrews.
John Crawford, McLetchie's then chief of staff, drove his boss and Monteith to the venue that charges pounds-75 a head for the use of its dining rooms.
The former Tory leader is then thought to have made a presentation on Scottish politics to his Republican hosts, before he and his group enjoyed a three-course meal and drinks.
Lothian and Borders detectives have quizzed the Scottish contingent on their hosts, as well as on the subjects that were discussed at the dinner. Both parties were said to have indulged in "liberal bashing", with the Americans mocking non-conservative Democrats and former President Bill Clinton.
The probe follows news that former Tory Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has also been quizzed by police about the controversial trip.
A spokesman for Lady Thatcher confirmed that police had contacted her office in order to clarify details of her meeting with Mr DeLay in May 2000.
Abramoff, who once described his Native American clients who run casinos as "monkeys", is a former member of Citizens for America, a group that helped Oliver North build support for the Nicaraguan contras.
His connection to Scottish politics is through Monteith, with whom he has enjoyed a long-standing friendship that dates back to student politics.
DeLay is a staunch opponent of abortion and gay rights. He also described the Environmental Protection Agency as "the Gestapo" and blamed the Columbine school shootings on the fact that evolution is taught in schools.
Confirmation of the Tory MSPs' attendance at the St Andrews dinner also raises the question of whether they should have declared the hospitality in the register of interest.
Parliamentary rules require disclosure of any gift or hospitality exceeding pounds-250, and it is unclear whether the lavish food and facilities provided are registrable.
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