The sister of a woman who was allegedly gagged and taped to a chair by male colleagues at a Scottish Government body has spoken out about her ordeal.

The image of DeeAnn Fitzpatrick restrained to the chair was from a suspected incident of workplace bullying at Marine Scotland's office in Scrabster, Caithness, in 2010.

Ms Fitzpatrick, a 49-year-old Canadian national, claims she was subjected to a decade of mistreatment at the organisation.

Her sister-in-law Sherry Fitzpatrick said the harassment got worse after she complained of bullying and misogyny by male colleagues against another female co-worker.

Senior management did not seem to take the claims seriously and Ms Fitzpatrick's life became a "living hell", her sister added.

Nicola Sturgeon said during First Minister's Questions she was "horrified" by the photograph and had asked the government's permanent secretary to review the case.

There is an ongoing employment tribunal and internal investigation into Ms Fitzpatrick's case.

Members of her family only became aware of the photograph - and the scale of the alleged abuse - in recent weeks.

Speaking to STV News from Newfoundland, Canada, Sherry Fitzpatrick said: "DeeAnn kept it to herself for a very long time.

"But after the whistleblowing incident about ten years ago, her life became a living hell with Marine Scotland and went unnoticed by a lot of senior management and human resources departments.

"Right now, her family is 100% behind her and it's going to my mission as her sister-in-law - and I just consider her my sister - to make sure that the people who've done this to her are made accountable.

"It'll be my mission to see a resolution to this and very soon because ten years is long enough."

She added the abuse was "ongoing for ten years" and also criticised management and HR at the body for threatening to discipline Ms Fitzpatrick after she flew to Canada to be with her father on his deathbed.

On the whistleblowing incident, Ms Fitzpatrick's sister claimed the male officers she had complained about were suspended with pay before being reinstated, with one even promoted.

After that, she said "it seemed like DeeAnn's life changed in that workplace, and the harassment, the sexual harassment, the bullying all happened".

She added the family had been "disgusted" and "sickened" at the photograph, first revealed by the BBC, and claimed management at Marine Scotland had been aware of it.

"So why didn't anything happen? Why didn't anybody do anything?" she asked.

Since the incident, she said Ms Fitzpatrick has become withdrawn and scared of going out, adding: "The only thing she wants is her dignity back."

At First Minister's Questions on Thursday, Highlands and Islands MSP Rhoda Grant raised the case of her constituent.

She said: "The First Minister is aware of the case of my constituent DeeAnn Fitzpatrick, about whom I have previously written to her.

"She cannot be anything other than shocked at the photograph published by the BBC showing one aspect of DeeAnn's abuse.

"Will the First Minister now intervene, investigate the abuse and stop DeeAnn's persecution at the hands of Marine Scotland, and will she also remove the gagging clause that stops DeeAnn telling her own story, because it is in the public interest that she is heard?"

The First Minister responded: "Like everyone else who has seen it, I am absolutely horrified at the photograph that has been in the media over the past 24 hours and I'm also horrified at the circumstances in which that photograph is alleged to have been taken.

"Bullying, abuse, sexism, racism have no place in any workplace and let me be very clear today: they will not be tolerated within the Scottish Government or within our agencies.

"There is, of course, as the member is aware, an ongoing employment tribunal, there's also an ongoing internal investigation, so I am somewhat limited in what I can say.

"I can tell the chamber that I have this morning asked the permanent secretary of the Scottish Government to conduct a full review of the circumstances of this case, a review of the action that has already been taken and of any action proposed to be taken, and to report to me personally on her conclusions as soon as possible."