Garage fire and stabbing hours apart linked to gang feud
BBCA firebombing of a Glasgow garage which was once the scene of an infamous gangland murder has been linked to an ongoing feud between organised crime groups.
Emergency services were called to reports of a van and two cars on fire at Lambhill Motors on Balmore Road in the north of the city at about 01:30 on Tuesday.
The garage, formerly known as Applecross Motors, is where 21-year-old Michael Lyons was shot dead in 2006 and two others were injured.
The fire was started hours after a 31-year-old man was stabbed in Musselburgh. It is understood both incidents are being investigated by detectives from Operation Portaledge, set up last year after an upsurge in gangland attacks.
The man was seriously injured in the attack on Drummohr Avenue in Musselburgh at about 23:15.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "A 31-year-old man was taken to hospital for treatment.
"Two men, aged 38 and 43, were arrested in connection and inquiries are ongoing."
Hours later, emergency services were called to the garage where the fire was extinguished. No one was injured.
The 2006 gangland attack on Applecross Motors was carried out by members of the Daniels gang who the Lyons family had been feuding with for over 25 years.
Hitmen Raymond Anderson and James McDonald were jailed for 35 years each for their part in the killing.
The trial was told the attack like something "out of a gangster movie".
Crime boss Steven Lyons was also wounded during the hit and another man Robert Pickett was seriously injured.
Lyons is currently in custody in Indonesia following his recent arrest and is expected to be extradited to face charges in Spain.
Operation Portaledge is the ongoing investigation into seemingly tit-for-tat violence across Glasgow and Edinburgh, which kicked off in March last year.
The trigger was said to be a falling out between Ross McGill, at the time based in Dubai, and Edinburgh-based Mark Richardson over a drug deal involving fake bank notes.
While the feud began in the east of Scotland, it soon spread westwards, with a number of incidents involving members and associates of both the Lyons and Daniels families.
In September, four major Scottish gangland figures – Steven Lyons, Ross McGill, Stephen Jamieson and Steven Larwood – were arrested in Dubai;
Jamieson was later extradited to Scotland and now faces High Court proceedings.
The others were released and ordered to leave the UAE, with Lyons subsequently arrested in Bali.
