If that was true then young Arthurs decision to take the night air was to prove fatal. Family and friends can send flowers and/or light a candle as a loving gesture for their loved one. Thompson in turn was accused of the culpable homicide of Goldie and Welsh. Prison chiefs were also under no illusions about the kind of man they were dealing with. The Thompson Gang was soon the most feared group in Scotland and rivals were terrified of Arthur due to his sadistic nature. Arthur Thompson Snr died of a heart attack in 1993. Norval made his name in local gangs, moving on to protection rackets, working pubs, clubs and bookies then, naturally, to armed robbery. Body of missing man Matthew Cosgrove discovered by police in Lanarkshire. His other son, Billy died in 2017 as a result of his drug addiction. Editors' Code of Practice. Some time afterwards he spotted them in their van. Glasgow shop sign blunder warns customers against 'consummation of food and drink'. MS-13 worked with Mexican drug cartels regularly and is becoming ever more active in the United States. Arthur's son Billy became a heroin . These adverts enable local businesses to get in front of their target audience the local community. Although he was aging, Old Arthur was still seen as a threat, so his enemies wanted to remove him from the picture permanently. 'No one is going to say anything about him or the rest of the family.'. However, he survived an assassination attempt in 1985 and another one in 1988. He avoided service in the war well he would, wouldn't he? Glasgow's gangsters, Arthur Thompson - the Godfather, Glasgow bakery Mortons Rolls 'ceases all trading' in 'hammer blow' to city. Rita Thompson is a Nursing Development Professional & Perioperative Specialist at Stanford Health Care based in Palo Alto, California. In time-honoured tradition, Thompson failed to speak out against the brothers and they were cleared of all charges. Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local services. THE widow of Arthur Thompson, the former Glasgow godfather, has died. While America is often deemed to have a high homicide rate compared to other Western nations, it pales in comparison to El Salvador where the murder rate is 22 times higher. Facebook gives people the power to. Ironically Ferris was a former friend and ally of the Thompson family, said to be closer to the father than even his own son. Both men were bitter rivals of Thompson. At one time, he had at least 20 pubs in Glasgow paying him 4000 each week. The Mungiki was linked to a triple murder in the United States and also mutilated and decapitated a 2-year old boy as part of a bizarre ritual. [4], On 18 August 1991 Thompson's son Arthur Jr (nicknamed "Fatboy") died after being shot three times[7] outside the family home,[8] "The Ponderosa". Bridgeman Images However, Rita never sang a note. The company, based in Drumchapel, has reportedly ceased all trading with its annual results currently overdue by more than two months. Beatings and slashings were routinely inflicted on anyone who failed to pay up. The gunman, an IRA hitman, had been hired by a rival to kill him. While Arthur liked to make money and stay out of the limelight, Fatboy loved being known as a major player in Glasgow and reveled in showing off his wealth. His death, coupled with the jailing of Paul Ferris on firearms charges in 1999, left a void which has generated a wave of violence. Supports are provided on site 24/7 including case workers from JHS and medical services provided by Ottawa Inner City Health (OICH) - a non-profit organization that provides health care to homeless and street involved people. Around 500 bodies of Mungiki gang members have turned up in bushes outside Nairobi; they are probably victims of in-fighting. YASSER FEVER; TENS OF THOUSANDS MOB ARAFAT COFFIN. One retired publican said: To stop trouble all the landlord or bar manager in one of those pubs needed to say was, This is Arthur Thompsons place.. Thompson received a not proven verdict, despite the eyewitness accounts of Joe and his brother. He was also cleared of attempting to murder Arthur Thompson Snr by repeatedly driving a car at him and threatening to murder another man William Gillen by shooting him in the leg. - but was later drafted for National Service, which he was determined to avoid, as he had much of school. Single Use in context. Rita, stabbed the wife of Patrick Welsh in the chest. Copyright 2006 Gale, Cengage Learning. [5], Thompson also survived two further attempts on his life; he was shot in the groin outside his home "The Ponderosa" in Provanmill, named after a ranch in the Western television series Bonanza in 1985. You can make a complaint by using the report this post link . A Gannett Company. All planned teacher strikes have been suspended after a new pay offer was presented by the Scottish Government. When they arrived in Los Angeles, they encountered an established system of Latin gangs and were not welcome. They continue to terrorize Kenyans, and it has been suggested that they might be the worlds largest gang regarding membership. Friendly with the likes of 'Mad' Frankie Fraser and Billy Hill, he was a leading underworld figure north of the border. If you have a complaint about the editorial content which relates to Failure to pay him what you owed resulted in a painful punishment. 3 - The Thompson Gang . There was a time when Billy Thompson, youngest member of Glasgow's most infamous criminal clan, could rely on his family's reputation to protect him wherever he went. A leading prosecution witness, in prison at the time, is provided with a constant police escort and kept in solitary confinement. The store will not work correctly in the case when cookies are disabled. 'You're wasting your time,' a shopkeeper said. Brothers Martin, George and Henry Welsh, 24, were charged with murdering Margaret and attempting to kill Arthur in the revenge attack. Thompsons name was enough to strike fear into anyone who crossed him. His bullet-ridden body was rushed to Glasgow Royal Infirmary but he died a few hours later. The Godfather was reportedly able to use his prison contacts to have steaks, alcohol and chocolate delivered to him each day in his cell. READ MORE:The Glasgow crime story of the mysterious murder of wealthy Marion Gilchrist in 1908. His grandchildren and great grandchildren have to remain anonymous for the safety of the family. On the day of Fatboys funeral, the bodies of two of Ferris associates were found in a car. Scores of large ones involving hundreds of foot soldiers, secret weapons arsenals and explosives in safe houses across Glasgow, and over three years in the mid-70s they mob carried out dozens of armed robberies, usually of payrolls, often from hospitals and major works, but also from post offices across the country. Obituaries & obituary notices in Glasgow. Zoe Hagman and her daughter Ariana Catalano have opened Arredo on Shawlands' Kilmarnock Road to bring some flair to the street and also to the homes of local shoppers. Further violence involving the Mungiki took place after the disputed Kenyan General Election in December 2007. HP10 9TY. Friends of Thompson say he was never the same after young Arthurs death. Search the Bridgeman archive by uploading an image. contact the editor here. Disaster struck in 1985 when Fat Boy was jailed for 11 years when he fell victim to a huge heroin bust. We identified 2 records related to "Rita Thompson" in the state of Kentucky. One detective on the case said: 'He had been a dead man walking for years. Gangsters usually have elaborate and colourful funerals and Walter Norval's was no different. Glasgow Live. *** Local Caption *** Scottish gangs. Arthur survived, but his mother-in-law was killed. Secret reports on Thompson from the late 1960s, made public for the first time by the Scottish Government in 2010 under Freedom of Information, present a chilling portrait of the man. photos. No one man had dominated organised crime in the city quite like Arthur Thompson and no one man ever would. It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need as much support as possible during these challenging times. Family and friends gathered in Motherwell to pay their respects to little Isabella Grace Docherty and lit lanterns for the five-year-old who died hours after complaining of feeling sick. In dramatic scenes, Thompson and the Welshes both stood trial at the same time at the High Court in Glasgow. [14], Thompson is survived by Tracey Thompson, his last remaining child. Thompson survived - just - and two men have since appeared in court in connection with the attack, which police are treating as attempted murder. Within a few weeks Ferris had been arrested, but Hanlon, 23, and Glover, 31, remained free. View the profiles of people named Rita Thompson. Download Glasgow gangster Arthur Thompson with his wife Rita Thompson, c.1970 (b/w photo) from Bridgeman Images archive a library of millions of art, The Godfather was able to use his prison contacts to have steaks, alcohol and chocolate delivered to him each day in his cell. During his trips to London hed become friends with one of the ring leaders, Buster Edwards, who would later attend the funeral of Arthurs murdered son, Arthur Jr. By the Eighties, the Thompson clan had moved into the drug trade led by the Thompsons' eldest son, Arthur Jnr, known as Fat Boy, who operated out of Blackpool. By the early 1980's Thompson - now in his 50's - was all-powerful in Glasgow and beyond. His coffin was carried by members of a biker club, his six daughters and a granddaughter all wore matching red outfits and music from the Clash blared out as the retinue made its way into the crematorium. So if you think you have a rare coin, here is what you need to know before selling. One of its founders claims that the Mungiki began as a local militia in the 1980s. Once, when giving evidence at the High Court in Glasgow he even joked about speaking with cotton wool in his mouth a technique Brando used in the iconic movie to sound like an Italian mobster. Thompson suspected both men of being involved in his sons murder and is said to have paid a hitman 20,000 to execute them. But when I was with Thompson I was safe and I could have had anything in the pub that I wanted that night.. JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. However, Thompson said the pairs reputation would damage the bands career. A funeral mass will be held at 11 AM, on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, at St. Michaels Catholic Church, Galena where friends may gather after 10:30 AM until the time of mass. The young Detective Constable got out of his own car and ran to a nearby petrol station to phone the emergency services, where he also found Thompson who then sped off. Arthur also enjoyed hobnobbing with celebrities. By 1966, Arthur Thompson was all-powerful in Glasgow. It was also rumoured that Thompson was involved in the 1963 Great Train robbery when 2.6 million (equivalent to around 30m now) was stolen from the Glasgow to London mail train. Norval went down for 14 years. Police are probing his links with a big dogfighting ring. One of his main sources of income over the years was providing protection to pubs in the city. He is a consummate villain. They could. There was to be further drama that day as there was also a bomb scare at the cemetery where Thompson Jr was due to be buried. By the 1980s, Glasgow was in the midst of a heroin epidemic as the drug flooded into the city in a market worth up to 30 million. [5] His other son, Billy, was stabbed and seriously wounded 400 yards (350 metres) from the family home [8] in 2000, but survived. Theres also little doubt that Arthur Thompson Snr ordered the killings. His closing years were plagued by two bouts of cancer, first of the bowel and then the lung. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the. READ MORE:The Glasgow Crime Story of Eleni Pachou who was murdered in her work Di Maggio's. In the 1960s, his wife Rita was employed as a singer, with one pub paying a fee of 200 for each performance the equivalent of 4000 in todays money. To quote from Norval's musical epitaph, My daddy was a bankrobber, but he never hurt nobody, he just loved to live that way, and he loved to steal your money.". Arthur Thompson, Rita Thompson.Circa, Glasgow Image ID: MX116351 Glasgow gangster Arthur Thompson, known as The Godfather, pictured with his wife Rita Thompson.Circa 1970. He then walked the few yards from one court to another to give evidence in the Welshes murder trial. In 1988, Thompson had another lucky escape when he was shot in the groin in a demolition yard he owned in the East End of Glasgow. Arthur was charged with their murders, but he was set free because no witnesses came forward to testify. View Anniversary. In 1969 she was jailed for three years for stabbing a female member of the rival Welsh family in her home and even wrote letters to the Parole Board on Thompsons behalf while inside. The truth about the slaying of Arthur 'Fat Boy' Thompson Junior, eldest son of the godfather of Glasgow's biggest criminal clan, outside his home in the Provanmill district in 1991, has been. Fraser, now dead, once recalled: Down south, we viewed Glasgow as the Wild West. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes. Rita M. Glasgow, 89, of Galena, died Wednesday, February 22, 2023, at Galena Stauss Senior Care Community, Galena surrounded by her family. Nadiya Tkachenko compitiendo en la prueba de lanzamiento de peso en el pentatln olmpico de 1980, donde gan la medalla de oro. Rita M. Glasgow. Arthur Thompson (September 1931 13 March 1993) was a Scottish gangster who was active in Glasgow from the 1950s and took charge of organised crime in the city for over thirty years. BROOKS John to Elizabeth (McInally) on 19th June 1971, in the parish of the Immaculate Heart of. The continent of Africa is plagued by an infestation of machete wielding gangs, and the Mungiki originated in much the same way as most of these outfits. Arthurs influence began to wane while his son was in prison and other gangs saw the chance of rich pickings. On the day of his funeral a month later, the bodies of Joe Hanlon and Bobby Glover were discovered outside the Cottage Bar, a pub they used in Shettleston, Glasgow. It was just a way for the terrified owner to pay protection to Thompson. She sadly passed away on Wednesday, March 1. The driver also failed a roadside drug wipe for cannabis. His daughter Rita, who had married one of the Blue Angels bikers (like Hell's Angels, only dirtier! He added: "Thompson is the leader of the hardcore of thugs in Aberdeen prison. Uncover details about birth, marriage, and divorce. [4] Thompson then went on to invest his money into legitimate businesses, which grew more and more over the years, making him a very wealthy man. Other papers record Thompson trying to stir up a hunger strike and pressing inmates to petition for better privileges and visiting rights. Three years later, Ferris was accused of the murder of the Fatboy who was shot three times outside of his home. His former business associate, Frankie Fraser, said Mrs Thompson was a "lovely lady". Kathy Friend, 60, lost her battle with secondary liver and bone cancer on February 19 but she is remembered for touching the lives of many with her amazing community projects. Arthur survived thebomb attack but his mother-in-lawMargaret Johnstone was killed outright. Arthur suspected that two men from the rival Welsh clan, Patrick Welsh and James Goldie, had planted the bomb. One police file said: The overall picture of Thompson is that of a violent, vicious and active criminal who will stop at nothing to uphold his position in the underworld as a hard man and to gain his own ends". Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local services. He is said to run his empire from a luxury yacht. The wife of late Glasgow godfather Arthur Thompson, died last week aged 72 after a battle with throat cancer. Norval's daughter, Rita Gunn, is charged with conspiring to damage the court but acquitted. Fatboy was very different to his father. The violence was on a much, much higher level. As a consequence, many of the young men that arrived gravitated towards violence. Lanterns lit after tragic death of Lanarkshire girl, 5, seen from plane by her grief-stricken family. View the profiles of professionals named "Rita Thompson" on LinkedIn. The gang boss was out for blood, and he suspected two members of the rival Welsh gang, Patrick Welsh, and James Goldie, of the attack. In the early 1960s, Thompson became close allies of notorious London gangsters The Kray twins, Ronnie and Reggie so much so, they are reputed to have come up to Glasgow to seek his advice on a plan to take over The Beatles from their manager Brian Epstein. Search for birth, death, marriage, divorce, US Census, and military records. As a subscriber, you are shown 80% less display advertising when reading our articles. Ferris trial was the longest and most expensive in Scottish history up to that point, but he was acquitted. However, Thompson said the pairs reputation would damage the bands career. The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) union has urged members to accept the offer. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. inaccuracy or intrusion, then please We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments. [9] He was acquitted of all charges. Joe Jackson was with his older brother John when they saw Thompson, in his top-of-the-range Jaguar, force a van into a lamppost, killing the occupants, James Goldie and Patrick Welsh. He was a very violent, ruthless, clever criminal and a real nasty piece of work. Privacy policy | Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local services. Newsquest Media Group Ltd, Loudwater Mill, Station Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.