Swinney apologises to girl at centre of Dundee knife case

First Minister John Swinney has apologised to a Dundee girl who brandished weapons at a Bulgarian man who was later convicted of assaulting her, after previously warning against "misinformation" around the incident. A viral video showing the 12-year-old holding a knife and axe was highlighted at the time by Elon Musk, who criticised the girl's arrest for "trying to defend herself." Ilia Belov, 22, was convicted last week of grabbing and pushing the girl and uttering sexual remarks to the girl and her friends last year. Swinney said he would "of course" apologise to the girl, as he said his comments at the time of the incident were based on the information he had on the case at the time. Police Scotland have now admitted that their initial statement "did not fully reflect the situation." It was initially indicated that no-one apart from the girl had been arrested or was wanted in connection with the incident. The girl's evidence in Belov's trial at Dundee Sheriff Court was described as "eloquent" by Sheriff Tim Niven-Smith. Musk, the billionaire owner of X and Tesla, shared a post about the incident last year. Raising the issue at First Minister's Questions, Reform UK leader in Scot