Glasgow Gangsters

This title provides a loose chronology of Glasgow's underworld since the 1960s, beginning with the rise to prominence of Arthur Thompson Sr, and chronicling the fight for supremacy over Glasgow's burgeoning heroin market in the early 1970s. It shows the growth of the cigarette, drug and alcohol smuggling rackets within the city and touches upon the notorious "Ice Cream Wars" and the rise in prominence of Thomas McGraw - nicknamed "the Licensee". This book details events as they progress to the present day and takes a peek into the modern-day underworld, showing how it is dominated by ruthless gangsters. It looks at the relationship between Glasgow's underworld and international crime consortiums and British underworld figures, as well as direct links between the IRA and the UVF and drug operators in the West Coast of Scotland. It contains information culled from interviews with retired police and customs officers, active CID officers, crime journalists and with many of the gangsters featured in the book. It paints a panoramic picture of the city's thriving criminal fraternity and pin-points how the ganglords have made their fortunes and who they have destroyed along the way.