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Arthur Thompson (September 1931 – 13 March 1993) known as "''the Godfather''",〔 〕 was a Scottish gangster who made his mark on the streets of Scotland in the 1950s. He then went on to take charge of organised crime for over thirty years. He was born in September 1931〔 ''The Last Godfather: The Life and Crimes of Arthur Thompson'' by Reg McKay, p. 7, pub Black & White Publishing, 2004. (ISBN 1-84502-030-8) 〕 in the industrial area of Springburn, Glasgow.〔 ''The Last Godfather: The Life and Crimes of Arthur Thompson'', p. 12. 〕 He died in Glasgow on 13 March 1993 from natural causes – a heart attack〔 – at the age of 61. According to rumour and later newspaper reports, he did not die in his bed, but paramedics took his body there following his death.〔 〕 ==Thompson crime family== Thompson began his career as a money lender. He was said to crucify those who did not repay their debts, by nailing them to floors or doors.〔 ''The Last Godfather: The Life and Crimes of Arthur Thompson'', p. 54, 〕 Protection rackets soon followed. He then went on to invest his money into legitimate businesses, which grew more and more over the years, making him a very wealthy man. By the 1980s, the Thompson family had entered the drug trade, led by Thompson's son Arthur Jr.〔 〕 It was rumoured that, by the 1990s, Thompson was earning some £100,000 a week as a loan shark (usurer). Thompson was one of the most feared criminals in Scotland. In 1966, he narrowly escaped death when a bomb exploded under his car; his mother-in-law, in the passenger seat, was killed. Shortly afterwards, he spotted two men he suspected of the attack, Patrick Welsh and James Goldie, members of the rival Welsh family gang. He forced their van off the road by driving his own car directly at it – the van hit a lamp post and both men were killed. Thompson was charged with murder but not prosecuted as the police could find no witnesses who would testify.〔 In 1969, Thompson's wife Rita forced her way into the Welsh home and stabbed Patrick Welsh's wife in the chest; she was jailed for three years.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Arthur Thompson (gangster)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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