The family of Glasgow crime godfather Arthur Thompson snr have been celebrating the death of Paul Ferris – 34 years after he was unanimously cleared of killing the crime kingpin’s son at the High Court.
The dearth of Paul Ferris was celebrated by a notorious crime boss’s family. The clan was seen popping champagne 34 years after Ferris was acquitted of murdering Arthur Thompson snr’s son.
A member of the Thompson family shared a photo featuring a bottle of bubbly just hours after news emerged that Ferris had passed away. They caption it: “It would be rude not to.”
Another posted on social media: “I think we are going to need another Magnum bottle to celebrate properly after 34 years.” Ferris passed away in Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital on Tuesday (October 6) at the age of 62 following a brief illness.
In 1992, he was unanimously cleared at the High Court in Glasgow of the murder of 31 year old Arthur “Fatboy” Thompson jnr in what was then the longest trial in Scottish criminal history, reports the Daily Record. The victim was the son of Glasgow crime lord Arthur Thompson, for whom Ferris had previously worked as an enforcer and debt collector.
A family source told the Daily Record: “The Thompsons have never spoken publicly about young Arthur’s murder or the fact that Paul Ferris was found not guilty. Ferris’s sudden death now appears to have become a cause for celebration, 34 years after he walked free from the High Court.
“It seems to be a case of the Godfather’s revenge,” the source added.
Tracey Thompson is amongst the few remaining members of the clan.
Arthur snr passed away in 1993 aged 63 after suffering a heart attack at the family residence in Provanmill, Glasgow. Mother Rita died in 2006 aged 72.
Tracey’s other brother Billy, who battled drug addiction, passed away in 2017 aged 50. Their sister Margaret died aged 28 in 1989 from a suspected drugs overdose.
All family members are believed to be interred in a plot at Riddrie Park Cemetery in Glasgow. On the day of Thompson jnr’s funeral in September 1991, two of the three men suspected of the killing, Joe Hanlon, 23, and Bobby Glover, 31, were discovered dead in Hanlon’s Ford Orion outside the Cottage Bar in Shettleston, Glasgow.
Both had been shot. The third suspect, Ferris, had already been charged with Thompson jnr’s murder and was being held on remand in Glasgow’s Barlinnie prison.
All three men were close associates who regularly used the Cottage Bar as their rendezvous point. The double killing was viewed as retribution by Thompson snr for his son’s death, who had been serving an 11-year sentence for heroin trafficking.
Thompson jnr had been granted weekend leave from Noranside prison in Angus as part of a rehabilitation programme preparing him for release. He was gunned down and fatally injured on the Saturday evening after departing his parents’ residence to make the brief journey to his own property where he resided with his wife and daughter.
For over three decades, his father dominated Glasgow’s criminal empire with ruthless control through his involvement in extortion, loan sharking, illegal gambling establishments, theft and narcotics. One of his primary revenue streams was offering “protection” services to licensed premises.
He is known to have destroyed a pub and social club when one proprietor refused to cooperate. At his peak, he had no fewer than 20 establishments in Glasgow paying him £4000 weekly .
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 Thompson’s place’.” Thompson snr also operated legitimate businesses including licensed premises, demolition companies, corner shops, motor garages and carpet retailers to conceal his wealth.
He forged a strong partnership in the early 60s with infamous London crime bosses the Kray twins, Ronnie and Reggie. Speculation also swirled that Thompson was connected to the infamous 1963 Great Train Robbery, when thieves made off with £2.6million (equivalent to roughly £30million today) from the Glasgow to London mail service.
His regular London visits had fostered a friendship with one of the masterminds, Buster Edwards, who would later pay his respects at Thompson jnr’s funeral. Prior to his death, Thompson snr resided with his family in a garishly transformed terrace of council properties dubbed The Ponderosa, after the 60s western television programme Bonanza.
Whispers suggested it boasted concealed passageways, secret hideaways and even its own underground tunnel. Thompson snr also testified during Ferris’s murder trial at Glasgow’s High Court, refuting claims he was the city’s criminal overlord.
During the same proceedings, Ferris was also acquitted of attempted murder and drugs charges. Half a dozen years on, Ferris found himself in the dock at London’s Old Bailey, where he was found guilty of conspiring to sell or transfer banned weapons, dealing in firearms and possessing explosives.
He received a 10-year jail term – subsequently cut to seven years. Behind bars, he penned his debut book, the Ferris Conspiracy.
The story was later adapted into a Bafta-winning film featuring Line of Duty actor Martin Compston in the role of Ferris. Ferris consistently maintained he had gone legitimate following his 2001 prison release, establishing himself as a respectable businessman with stakes in a security outfit and building firm. He also released five books chronicling his former criminal past and had been plotting a follow-up to the Wee Man as well as a third film.
In his final interview, with the Daily Record in July, the father of five addressed people’s scepticism that he had turned over a new leaf, saying: “I have either been an absolute criminal genius for the last 25 years or I have done nothing wrong. Take your pick.”
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