Golfers 'traumatised' after being caught up in brutal assassination of gangsters

Daily Mirror

06-06-2025

The shooting of gangsters, Eddie Lyons and Ross Monaghan, at an Irish bar on the Costa del Sol in Spain this weekend, is believed to be linked to an ongoing brutal gang war in Scotland
A gangster's Scottish 'golf buddies' were with him in Spain on a sunshine holiday when he was gunned down in a ruthless assassination.
Mob boss Eddie Lyons Jnr was on a trip with pals from Dullatur Golf Club when he was gunned down along with associate Ross Monaghan in the Costa del Sol. The golfers have been left 'traumatised' after being caught up in the mob violence while enjoying their trip to Spain with Lyons, sources have revealed.
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They had joined Eddie Lyons at Ross Monaghan's Irish bar in Fuengirola to watch the Champions League Final on Saturday. It is understood that some of the golfers were still in the bar when Lyons and Monaghan were executed.
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Sources have confirmed the golfers have nothing to do with criminality - but saw Eddie as a stalwart member of their golf club. Prestigious Dullatur Golf Club, near Kilsyth, has been flying flags at half mast this week as a mark of respect for long-standing member Lyons jnr, who was brought up in a house near the course.
The murdered gangland kingpin has previously proudly posed with fellow members in photographs that have been shared on social media.
A source said: 'Accounts of Eddie Lyons going to Spain for some kind of gangland summit are untrue. The truth is that the golf trip is one that has happened in previous years and he signed up for it well in advance with mates. The boys get out to Spain and have a laugh and play some good courses.
'They had been there for several days and wanted to go to the Champions League Final, so Eddie arranged for him and a few others to go along to a bar that was owned by his mate. He arranged that he would catch up with Ross Monaghan there and they were having a bog-standard, social evening night until all hell broke loose.'
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The golfing party, of more than a dozen players, also included members from nearby clubs, some of whom were in different nearby bars. After the double murder, a video soon emerged that showed a man leaning over stricken gangster Lyons. It is believed this was a golfer who was a friend of the dead man.
Another horrific video showed Ross Monaghan fleeing from the gunman inside the bar, who had emerged from a car nearby before first attacking Lyons. Monaghan, 43, ran from the outside terrace area to the indoor bar, where he was chased then viciously shot down.
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The source said: 'It is believed that the hit was organised for Ross Monaghan and it's likely that it was just chance that brought Eddie Lyons to the bar that night. It's hard to see how he could have been part of the plan.
'It is also likely that the gunman had been watching the bar to see, primarily, if Ross Monaghan was there. It's not known if the gunman would have known what Eddie Lyons looked like in advance but, one way or another, he has worked out who is in attendance and acted fast and ruthlessly.
'This is not a double execution that was planned well in advance. A window of opportunity opened and that is why it turned into a double murder."
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It is believed that some golfing pals of Lyons were spoken to by Spanish police and may later be asked by specialist organised crime officers in Spain for a more detailed account of what happened on that night. Other golfers who were with Lyons for the golf trip were also close friends of Andy 'Dumbo' Gallacher - who was also a member at Dullatur but died in prison in 2021.
The current gang war centres around a reported fall-out between Edinburgh kingpin Mark Richardson and Dubai-based Ross McGill, a former Rangers 'ultras' fan leader, now associated with a sinister 'Tamo Junto' group.
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It is claimed that McGill was ripped off for £500,000 in a drug deal. Several people linked to Richardson and his allies in Glasgow's Daniel crime mob have been targeted, with homes, businesses and associates hit by firebombs and people attacked with knives.
The Tamo Junto (TMJ) has circulated videos and issued messages to taunt their rivals. Several cars have been set ablaze and drive-by shootings have left bullet holes in doors and windows. A nasty home invasion in north Glasgow left a young boy and an older woman – both related to the Daniel family – bloodied and battered.
The incessant attacks led to speculation that Richardson and the Daniel mob were 'finished'. But the level of violence employed in Fuengirola, with the deadly use of a handgun and the complications of operating across European borders, has escalated the war.
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The Tamo Junto gang have blamed the Lyons's Scottish rivals for the execution. Police Scotland has said there is 'nothing to suggest' the shooting of Eddie Lyons Jnr and Ross Monaghan was planned in Scotland.
Both Lyons and Monaghan had previously survived attempts on their lives. Eddie Lyons was shot in the face at his home in Cumbernauld, Lanarkshire, in 2006.
Monaghan was cleared over the 2010 execution of Daniel enforcer Kevin 'Gerbil' Carroll, who was gunned down in a car outside Asda in Robroyston, Glasgow. He moved to Spain after surviving a previous murder bid when he was shot outside a primary school in Penilee, Glasgow, in 2017.
On Saturday Lyons was shot in the chest at point-blank range and died instantly. At least four bullets were fired at Monaghan inside. A source at Dullatur Golf Club, which charges £950 a year for membership, confirmed that the club's flags had been put at half mast after Eddie Lyons's death.
The source said: 'It has been a tradition for more than 100 years that we gave people that respect when they pass. That respect would be given to all members. People at the club are shocked at what happened. Our members are interested in playing golf and what happened in Spain is another world entirely.'