POLICE ALLEGEDLY accused the wife of former Scottish Socialist MSP Tommy Sheridan of "acting like an IRA terrorist" before she was charged with perjury and theft, the Sunday Herald has learned.

British Airways hostess Gail Sheridan reserved her right to silence under questioning by Lothian and Borders Police over evidence she gave in her husband's £200,000 libel victory over the News of the World.

But sources close to the inquiry have revealed that officers became so irritated over her continued silence that they made the terrorist comparison.

The latest twist in the long-running perjury investigation emerged yesterday after Mrs Sheridan was suspended from her job for allegedly stealing bottles of alcoholic miniatures from the airline, which were found during a police search of the couple's home. Their solicitor accused police of hounding the family.

Mrs Sheridan, 44, was charged with perjury and theft last Tuesday at an Edinburgh police station, two months after her husband was also charged with lying. She denied the allegations.

She had staunchly defended her husband's reputation at his 2006 libel trial against the tabloid newspaper.

The family lawyer, Amer Anwar, and Mr Sheridan's political party, Solidarity, have launched a fightback against what they described as police harrassment and "trial by media" following the decision to charge Mrs Sheridan with theft, which was revealed yesterday in two tabloids.

Anwar will this week write to Lothian and Borders chief constable, David Strang, lord advocate, Elish Angiolini and justice minister Kenny MacAskill demanding explanations for the force's handling of the perjury investigation and recent search.

He said: "The family now firmly believe they are being subject to harrassment, intimidation and a witch-hunt. There are now real question marks over how Lothian and Borders Police are operating.

"Mr Sheridan has repeatedly stated that he is subject to a witch-hunt. The police have to ask themselves if it's in the public interest that 40,000 police officer hours and £1 million has been spent during a year-long investigation into allegations of perjury in a civil case.

"People will be asking, whose interests are they serving? Have they nothing better to do? I am aware the police took away baby clothes (during the search). What has that to do with a perjury inquiry in the run-up to Christmas?"

Mr Sheridan, 43, told BBC Radio Scotland yesterday that police will have a "fight on their hands" over the latest allegations. He said officers went through the couple's underwear and their daughter's clothing during the search of their Glasgow home.

He added: "They have taken some miniatures they are trying to allege have been illegally removed, and they are going to have a fight on their hands as far as that is concerned."

Earlier, Anwar said Mrs Sheridan had an "unblemished record with British Airways, whom she has represented as part of their promotional team, as well as serving as a shop steward and now as a senior cabin crew member".

He added: "She understands British Airways employment procedures, but firmly believes she is now a victim of harrassment and intolerable behaviour from Lothian and Borders Police and sections of the press.

"Both Mr and Mrs Sheridan are determined to prove their innocence and will not be intimidated or bullied by Lothian and Borders Police."

Meanwhile, members of Solidarity, which was formed after Mr Sheridan's split from the Scottish Socialist Party following the libel trial, petitioned shoppers in Edinburgh, Glasgow and towns across Scotland in a day of action to show support for the Sheridans and four party colleagues who are also facing perjury charges. Mrs Sheridan's father, Angus Healy, 71, has also been charged.

A party spokesman said: "We call on the Crown Office to instruct Lothian and Borders Police to end this vendetta against Tommy Sheridan, his family and his political allies."

A Lothian and Borders Police spokeswoman said: "A 44-year-old woman has been arrested and charged and a report will be submitted to the procurator fiscal." The force refused to make any further comment.

A spokesman for British Airways said: "A member of cabin crew has been suspended as part of an ongoing investigation." He added: "We do not discuss individual members of staff."

Mr Sheridan was charged with perjury around 16 months after he won his libel action, during which he ditched his counsel and represented himself at Edinburgh's Court of Session. He was arrested after presenting his weekly radio phone-in show in Edinburgh.