Police Scotland have claimed that a violent underworld dispute lasting more than 15 months has ended after rival sides 'settled their differences' following the arrests of more than 60 gang members. The force launched Operation Portaledge in March last year after a series of firebombings and machete attacks which began in Edinburgh then spread to Glasgow.
Operation Details and Outcomes
A report on behalf of Chief Constable Jo Farrell to oversight body the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) revealed that the force investigated more than 84 incidents of violence and disorder, arrested 64 people and enforced 55 search and arrest warrants. Seven firearms and 'assorted weapons' were recovered, and over 90 safeguarding plans were put in place to protect 'vulnerable people' caught up in the feud.
The violence which spread across Scotland was linked to a long running feud between two Glasgow crime families, the Lyons and the Daniels, dating back more than 25 years. The feud was reignited following a fallout between Ross McGill, the former head of Rangers Football Club's ultras fan group the Union Bears, and convicted Edinburgh drug baron Mark Richardson, who is currently in prison. McGill is said to have strong links to the Lyons crime clan and Richardson to the Daniel family. McGill is said to have been ripped off when a £500,000 consignment of cocaine was allegedly paid for with fake money by a Richardson associate.
Timeline and Escalation
Much of the violence both in Edinburgh and Glasgow including the firebombings have been linked to a shadowy group, allegedly orchestrated by McGill, called Tamo Junto. The SPA report reveals that the worst violence was in the six month period up to September last year with a resurgence in the first two months of this year with more incidents and arrests. The Chief Constable said in her report that Operation Portaledge was launched 'following a wave of violence between Serious Organised Crime Groups (SOCGs) throughout the central belt of Scotland.'
She added: 'What followed was a deeply concerning “war” between rivals, that would span six months and cover the length and breadth of Scotland before there was a clear and obvious downturn in activity. The cause of that downturn was without question multi factorial including the resolution of differences within the Serious And Organised Crime (SAOC) community. However the impact of Police Scotland and partners effort to coordinate, disrupt and detect offenders cannot be understated.'
Recent Resurgence and Response
'Throughout that period we were agile enough to adapt processes to ensure organisational coordination and shared situational awareness to make sure our response was as effective as it could be. The period around January/Feb 2026 saw a brief re-emergence of SOCG linked activity which we once again responded to by escalating our processes with a return to the Portaledge framework. This period saw ten further incidents with five individuals arrested to date, and investigations ongoing to drive more.'
Of the Operation Portaledge cases which have come to court, several have resulted in lengthy prison sentences. One man was jailed for eight years and four months after admitting carrying out a machete attack on an Edinburgh businessman linked to Richardson. Four men were jailed or detained for a total of 25 years over a series of fire-raising attacks in Glasgow and Edinburgh. The judge Lord Mulholland told them: 'Gangsterism is never acceptable in a civilised society.' And a man who petrol bombed a beauty salon in Edinburgh, linked to Mark Richardson, at the start of the violence, was jailed for seven years and four months at the High Court in Edinburgh.
Broader Context and Related Incidents
Most of the attacks in the last 15 months have been against members and associates of the Daniel family as well as associates of Mark Richardson and people linked to him. In May last year, two senior members of the Lyons crime group were shot dead in Fuengirola on the Costa Del Sol. Eddie Lyons Jnr and his associate Ross Monaghan were gunned down in front of friends and customers in a beachfront bar. Police Scotland have always claimed there is no link between the two murders and to the feud under investigation by Operation Portaledge, or that they had been planned in Scotland.
A Liverpool man, Michael Riley, 44, has been extradited to Spain and is waiting to stand trial over the shootings. Another now in Spanish custody is Steven Lyons, the head of the Lyons crime group. Lyons was arrested in Bali in March, deported to the Netherlands and extradited to Spain last month. Spain's national police force say the Glaswegian was wanted in connection with drug trafficking, money laundering and an alleged murder in 2024. Ross McGill was one of four Scottish men arrested by police in Dubai including Steven Lyons last September, but his current whereabouts are unknown.
