Gang war arrests hit 54 as investigations into criminal feud continue

An ongoing gang-busting operation has resulted in the arrest of 54 people across central Scotland.

Officers executed a warrant in Coatbridge on Friday and charged a 39-year-old man and a 37-year-old woman in connection with the wilful fire-raising of a vehicle, which happened on Bardowie Street in Glasgow on April 30.

They were both released on an undertaking and are due to appear at Glasgow Sheriff Court at a later date.

Last month, Police Scotland’s chief constable urged members of the public to come forward to aid detectives in tracking down those involved.

Jo Farrell said: “My priority has been to ensure that the people of Scotland are safe, so we have put a lot of resource and effort and skill behind Operation Portlage.

“Our drive is to reduce activity of people involved in serious and organised crime in Scotland.

“What we’ve seen as part of this work is people coming forward, giving the police information, which has helped us tremendously in identifying, targeting those people that are dealing in drugs.

“They’re dealing in violence, they’re exploiting people who are vulnerable, and they are causing a lot of harm in local communities.

“People are seeing this on a daily basis, and it’s our drive to eradicate it.”

Local and specialist officers continue to carry out extensive enquiries to gather evidence.