The Incredible Rise of a Gorbals Gangster

by Colin MacFarlane

  Archie replied, “Four pubs, three shops for insurance money. On the loan side, six punters who are overdue with repayments, and a further three who want a loan of a few bob. On the betting side, about a dozen guys who want to place bets and to collect their winnings.”

  Johnny was chauffeured round the Gorbals and nearby areas as his two men went into pubs and clubs to collect and dole out money. He barely had to do a thing. After every visit he was usually handed a pile of notes which he registered in a black book of accounts that Bobby had provided. He stored the cash inside a metal box which his boss had also given him. At the end of the day, he had collected more than £500 and paid out £50 in loans and winning bets. He was amazed at how easy it was to make money, especially from a so-called impoverished place like the Gorbals, but as the English said, “Where there’s muck, there’s brass.”

  At the end of the day’s trading, Archie sat at the steering wheel and said, “Where next boss?” Kenny was silent as he was still studying the odds in the paper.

  “Crown Street, ah think ah’ll call in and see ma wee maw,” Johnny said. The car stopped outside the tenement close. He jumped out saying, “Back in a jiffy, boys.” He put the key in the latch and went inside his parent’s flat. His mother looked as though she had been crying. “What’s the matter, maw?” He said. She looked shattered, “Ach, it’s just one of those days, everything seems to be getting me down.”

  “Like what?”

  “Two boys have been beating up your wee brother and some union guy has banned your father from ever working again on the boats.”

  He went into the “wee room” next door and found his brother Joseph looking depressed. He had bruises on his forehead and two black eyes. Johnny said angrily,

  “Who did it?” but Joseph was reluctant to spill the beans, he was no grass. “Look, if you don’t tell me who did it I’ll be up to your school in the morning and ask every fucker, including your headmaster, who was behind your beating.” Joseph reluctantly told him the two boy’s names. Johnny knew that after school they hung around the Queens Park Café in Victoria Road.

  He ran down the tenement stairs determined to settle the score. He, Archie and Kenny walked into the café and ordered three cones. Johnny saw the two boys, aged about 15, straight away, laughing and tucking into two dishes of ice cream. He felt like going over and punching them straight away. But then Bobby’s words came back to haunt him, “Don’t get your hands dirty, delegate.” He said in a low voice to his men, “See those two young wankers there? They’re bullies who have been beating up ma wee bother. When they’ve come out, give them a slap.” They headed to the car with their ice creams and waited for about 15 minutes until the boys appeared.

  Archie said, “Let me handle this!” He walked up to the boys and shouted, “Ah hear you’ve been taking a liberty, battering wee Joseph.” The boys looked ashen-faced with fright. Archie grabbed their two heads and banged them together. Both of them fell to pavement, crying like babies. Archie shouted to them again, “Fuck wi’ wee Joseph and you’re fucking wi’ us.” He jumped back behind the wheel and made off. Johnny and Kenny Boy could not stop laughing at the whole scenario. It had looked like a scene from a Three Stooges movie. Johnny told Archie to drop him back at the family tenement and finish for the day. They would take the money to Bobby in the high flats.

  When he got back in his family house both Joseph and his mother were sitting gloomily in the kitchen. “Hey, you two, cheer up, it might never happen,” he shouted, “By the way, those two boys who beat Joseph up won’t be doing it again, ah can promise you that!”

  Both mother and son cheered up, “What did you say to them?” Joseph asked. “I said nothing, but ah got one of ma men tae knock some sense into them.” He exited the flat leaving them in far better spirits than when he had found them.

  He adored being a gangster, it made him love life even more. It was an incredible feeling.

  Chapter 53

  ARCHIBALD

  A few days later Johnny was busy working with Archie and Kenny and had been impressed with their variety of talents. Archie was everything an enforcer should be, tough, smart and had a very quick wit. Once when a punter had refused to pay his arrears, Archie went to his flat and hung him by the legs out of a three story tenement window. The guy ended up pleading upside down, “Please don’t drop me, don’t let me fall, ah’ll get your money straight away.” Of course, Archie had no intention of killing the fellow but merely intended to put the frighteners on him. On another occasion, another punter tried to “act fly” when asked for his overdue payment. He kept calling him “Archibald” which was the one thing he hated. It was his real name and he had been taunted for years at school about it with other pupils taunting him by chanting, “Archibald, Archibald, when you’re auld you’re gonnae be bald, Archibald!” The taunts had not come true, he had a full head of hair but the memories in the school playground still haunted him.

  The punter had taunted him by saying, “Archibald, you’ll get your money ok, Archibald?” He flipped and head butted the man on the nose, breaking it in several places. He met up with the debtor a few days later who paid up in full saying, “Sorry about the misunderstanding Archie.” Johnny believed that if the fellow had called him Archibald again he would have killed him on the spot. Kenny was a different kettle of fish. Unlike Archie he had a slow-burning fuse and seemed to calculate his every move. When Archie suggested breaking someone’s legs for missing several payments, Kenny had replied, “No’ a good idea, Archie. If the guy cannae walk he cannae work, which means we’ll get fuck all at the end of the day. Let me have a word wi’ him.”

  He saw the debtor in a pub and explained that Archie planned to break his legs but had talked him out of it. The guy eventually paid up in full a few days later. One the betting side, Kenny lived up to his reputation as a whiz kid with figures. He could calculate the odds on any bet within a few seconds. And he was usually never wrong in his predictions. He was also quite good in fights and carried an old policeman’s truncheon and if need be would “batter some sense” into any punter who tried to take him for a fool. Johnny reflected that with these two enforcers by his side, and the backing of Bobby McGee and even big Arthur, he could do no wrong.

  He had sent them on errands to collect money one day and sat in the Sou’ Wester pub on Eglinton Street and reflected on things. Everything was going well, the money was flowing in and he enjoyed the job. But had Bobby been right in refusing to deal in drugs when there were such big profits to be made? He had heard through the grapevine that a Scouser from Liverpool had arrived in Glasgow and started a drug dealing business. He had been told the guy was called Tony Shaw, in his early 30s, and had based himself near Bridgeton Cross, where he had a garage that was a store for cocaine and marijuana. Johnny was just thinking about this when three strangers entered the bar.

  They all had one thing in common. Strong Liverpool accents which stood out like a sore thumb in the Gorbals. One of the guys, thin with brown hair, was in his early 30s and the other two guys were in their late 40s. They were comparatively well dressed in suits.

  But the suits looked cheap and certainly not in the same class as the ones Johnny and his men wore. He presumed the young Scouser was Tony Shaw and his two Liverpool cronies were his enforcers.

  Tony ordered three pints and looked in Johnny’s direction. He came over to the table and said, “You must be Johnny McGrath. I’ve heard a lot about you.” They shook hands and Tony sat down, leaving his pals standing at the bar. “Johnny, I know you are one of Bobby’s men. Can you not get him to change his mind?”

  “About what?”

  “About dealing in Charlie and hash. If you and your mob joined up with us we’d make a good team. Plenty of dosh and it’s easy money.”

  Johnny decided to play it cool, “I know ah’ve tried tae explain to Bobby but he’s old school and looks down on the drug trade.”

  Tony looked slightly miffed, “Can he not see the profit potent
ial? Business is booming and with your crew on board we could make a fortune.” Johnny said he would have another word with Bobby and Tony Shaw scribbled out his address on a piece of paper, his small warehouse just off Bridgeton Cross. He and his two henchmen then left the pub in a good mood believing that Johnny would influence Bobby and go into business with them.

  But when he got back to Bobby’s flat and told him of the offer, he flew into a furious rage, “No way we are getting involved with those Scouse bastards, we’ll end up doing 15 years each in jail. The judges are very strict on that. Money lending, betting and protection insurance you might get a slap on the wrist. But drugs? They’ll lock you up and throw away the key, Johnny. Think of a plan to run those bastards out of town. “

  He said he’d see what he could do and left Bobby’s flat with a thumping headache. Cathy was out with the baby and her mother so he decided to head to his family home in Crown Street.

  When he got there his mother and father were sitting having a cup of tea and looked dejected. His father explained, “I thought I was gonnae be back on the boats but this union official called Angus McTavish has put the blocks on it. Ah’ve never liked him and he hates me. We had a big argument and he said ah’ll never work on the boats again.” During the course of the conversation, which lasted for half an hour, Johnny learnt that Angus McTavish was in his late 50s and was known for “going by the book” and punishing heavily any union men who broke the rules. When he heard Johnny’s father had been caught fiddling tips he came down on him like a ton of bricks. Johnny asked his father to describe Angus. He said, “He’s a big fat bastard, 6’2” with red hair and a beard to match, typical guy from the Highlands.”

  Johnny’s first instinct was to find out if Angus had any weak points, an Achilles Heel, that he could focus on. Turned out, he had. He was “a ladies man” who hung around with prostitutes most nights in Betty’s Bar in the Broomielaw, not far from the union’s offices.

  He bade his father farewell saying, “Don’t worry, your luck will change soon, I can guarantee that. You’ll be back on the boats before you know it.” He met up with Archie and Kenny and they drove to Betty’s Bar. It was about 9pm and the place was busy with drinkers, mostly seamen, and prostitutes.

  They sat in the corner of the bar and monitored the situation. Sure enough the man they recognised as Angus was at a table looking very drunk, accompanied by two sleazy looking women. He was singing The Wild Rover in an out of tune voice, “Ah’ve been a wild rover.” About 20 minutes later Angus got up and staggered out of the door. Johnny and his men got into the car outside and drove a few hundred yards to pull up beside Angus.

  Johnny and Kenny bundled him into the car and sped off with Archie at the steering wheel. Angus was shouting, “Who the fuck are you guys? Where the fuck are you taking me?” Kenny hit him on the back of the head with his truncheon and knocked him unconscious. They drove for about 20 minutes and found themselves in a wood on the outskirts of Glasgow. Angus suddenly woke up and stared into the darkness of the wood. “Where the fuck am I?” he shouted. Archie pulled out a revolver, Johnny was not sure if it was real or a starting pistol. He told Angus to get out of the car. Still pointing the gun, Archie handed the union man a shovel and said,” “Start digging a hole ye bastard, deep enough and wide enough for your fat body tae fit in.” Angus began digging but began to sober up and burst out crying. He shouted, “Please don’t kill me boys. Please, ah beg you, ah’ll do anything. Ah’ve got a wife and kids in Oban, ah don’t want tae die, please boys.” Angus looked a pathetic sight, no longer was he the powerful union man. He knew his life could be ended at any minute.

  Johnny came forward through the darkness, “Do you recall Jo Jo McGrath, the seaman who was caught fiddling?”

  Angus began shaking violently, “Of course ah do.”

  Johnny growled, “Well, make sure he gets the go ahead to go back to work on the boats.”

  “But he’s broken all the rules!”

  Johnny shouted back, “It’s either he gets his job back by next week or pick up that fucking shovel and start digging your own grave, ya fat wanker.”

  Angus was ashen white and trembling with fear, “Ok! Ok! I get the message boys. He’ll get the go-ahead to start work on the boats again.”

  They bundled Angus into the car, put the shovel in the boot and sped off back to Glasgow. Angus was told that he would be “a dead man walking” if he told anyone about the kidnap. They left him at a bus stop near the Broomielaw and drove off laughing. Archie said, “Ah think that big Highland bastard got the message.” Johnny laughed, “Aye, it’s no’ every day you get the chance tae dig your own grave. Fat balloon deserved it.”

  A few days later, Johnny was lying in bed with Cathy by his side, and the baby in a cot nearby, when suddenly there was loud knocking on the door. It was only 7am. The baby began to cry loudly. Cathy said, “Who the hell is that at this time in the morning?” Johnny looked through a spy hole in the door, two policemen stood outside. He opened the door. One of the policemen said, “Johnny McGrath?”

  “Aye, who’s asking?”

  “Glasgow police, we want to interview you about allegations of assault.” Johnny got ready and was taken in handcuffs to police headquarters, near Glasgow Cross. He was put in a police cell thinking,

  “That Angus bastard has grassed me up. We should have just buried him.” About an hour later the cell door opened and two policemen took him into an interview room. They were joined by a CID guy in his late 40s. He said to Johnny, “We believe you were behind a serious assault, can you tell me anything about it?” Of course he would tell them nothing, the grass seaman deserved everything he had got. “Tell you what?”

  “Well, last week two schoolboys were assaulted outside a café in Victoria Road and say you and your pals were behind it.”

  In a way Johnny was relieved to hear this. “Ah did go into the Queens Park Café last week and there were a couple of cheeky schoolboys there. They gave a guy, who I do not know, a bit of lip. He ended up banging their heads together outside the café. But it’s nothing to dae wi’ me.”

  “So, you don’t know who this guy is?”

  “Nah never seen him before in ma life. He was a stranger from out of town.”

  The CID guy seemed unconvinced, he looked him straight in the eye, “The problem we’ve got, Johnny, is one of the assaulted boys is the head of CID’s son. He wants the guy caught and locked up a.s.a.p.” He replied, “Look, ah’ve got some info for you that might please your boss far better than catching the guy who battered his boy.”

  The CID guy raised his eyebrows, “Oh aye, what would this information be?”

  “About a big drugs cache in Glasgow.”

  The CID guy smiled, he was definitely interested Johnny handed him a piece of paper with Tony Shaw’s name and the address of the Bridgeton warehouse. The CID guy looked at it with an incredulous grin on his face. He said, “You’re right this is very important information, far bigger than the slapping of two daft boys.”

  Johnny was free to go. The next day he went back to his father’s house. He found his parents and brother in high spirits. His father exclaimed, “They’ve given me ma job back. Ah’ve been reinstated, it’s a miracle!” Johnny replied, “Good for you da! I knew your luck would change for the better.” That night, he picked up a copy of the Evening Times and the front page headline declared: BIG DRUGS HAUL IN BRIDGETON. THREE LIVERPOOL MEN ARRESTED.

  Johnny was learning all the time. Being a gangster meant you had to make the right move at the right moment… perhaps he should take up playing chess.

  Chapter 54

  NARCOTICS

  Johnny had a tinge of guilt as he had never grassed up anyone before and for a brief time, it gnawed at his conscience. In fact, he felt like he was cracking up more than Humpty Dumpty. But when he told Bobby, his boss was delighted, “Look, you’ve saved us a lot of money, time and hassle. If you hadn’t done that we would have had to put a posse together, all
on good money to run those Scousers out of town. It was a good move to tell the polis. In fact, ah heard big Arthur does it all the time.”

  Bobby emphasised that what Johnny had done was “a tactical move” to get their rivals out of town. But there was awareness that times were changing. They had noticed that a lot of Asian men were going about in big fancy cars buying investment properties in Glasgow. They had no doubts that drug money was behind this. They had been reliably informed that the Asians were importing hashish and heroin from Pakistan. It was certainly more lucrative than running a corner shop selling milk and bread. The tide was definitely turning in the direction of narcotics. But it was a matter of convincing Bobby to change with the times otherwise they would be left behind. The business they ran, betting, banking and insurance was lucrative enough but much of it was a drop in the ocean to what they could earn from selling drugs.

  Meanwhile, Johnny had proved to be an effective second in command. With Archie and Kenny by his side they were certainly a formidable force, feared and respected by many. Johnny had decided that he and his men would have at least one day off, a Sunday. It gave them a chance to unwind and for Johnny to be a family man.