Two Scots with ties to Glasgow’s underworld were gunned down in a Spanish bar over the weekend — but police say the killings aren’t necessarily a continuation of Scotland’s gangland feud.
Eddie Lyons Jnr, 46, and Ross Monaghan, 43, were shot dead late Saturday night in a bar in Fuengirola on Spain’s Costa del Sol. The two were reportedly watching the Champions League final when a gunman burst in and opened fire. Spanish police have launched a murder investigation, but back in Scotland, officials say there’s currently no evidence to suggest the killings were planned or ordered from home turf.
A brazen double murder in a busy tourist bar
It was just after 11pm when the calm of a football night on the seafront was shattered.
Monaghans pub — a local expat haunt named, ironically, after one of the victims — was packed with holidaymakers and football fans. Witnesses say the attack was quick and clinical. A lone gunman entered, fired multiple shots, then fled the scene in a waiting car.
Spanish authorities believe the hit was targeted. Both Lyons and Monaghan were well known to law enforcement in Scotland. Their links to the notorious Lyons crime family — long locked in a bitter feud with the rival Daniels gang — has raised suspicions the attack may be connected to Glasgow’s gang war. But officials aren’t jumping to conclusions just yet.
Police Scotland plays it down — for now
While the killings have set tongues wagging across Glasgow, Police Scotland has been quick to tamp down the speculation.
“There is currently no intelligence to suggest the deaths of these two men in Spain are linked to the recent criminal attacks in Scotland,” a statement from the force read. They also confirmed they had no officers working on the ground in Spain and are assisting only where asked.
The timing, however, is awkward. Back in Scotland, Operation Portaledge — a major police crackdown on organised crime — has been ongoing since March. More than 40 arrests have already been made, with attacks including firebombings and daylight shootings across Glasgow and Edinburgh. So, it’s no surprise people are connecting dots.
But that, police warn, could be dangerous.
“Any misinformation or speculation linking the events in Spain are not helpful to the ongoing investigations in either country,” their statement added.
Could this be about more than Scotland?
One name keeps resurfacing in all of this: Kinahan.
Steven Lyons — brother of Eddie Jnr — is known to have ties with the Kinahan cartel, the Dubai-based Irish crime group considered one of the most dangerous in Europe. The US government has a $5 million reward on the heads of its leadership. Drugs, guns, money laundering, murder — their rap sheet is global.
Spanish investigators haven’t confirmed any link between the Kinahans and the Fuengirola shootings, but sources suggest they’re not ruling it out either.
Theories swirling among investigators include:
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Retaliation over a failed international drugs shipment
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A turf dispute involving Kinahan-aligned figures on the Costa del Sol
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Internal tensions between factions within the Lyons group itself
Still, there’s no clear answer. Yet.
Costa del Sol’s growing crime headaches
Fuengirola isn’t new to crime, but this one hit close to home.
Monaghans is smack on the seafront — a busy area full of bars, beachgoers, and British expats. Tourists nearby were reportedly terrified, with one describing the scene as “like something out of a Netflix show.”
Mayor Ana Mula isn’t hiding her frustration. She’s now demanding more national police on the ground, particularly officers trained in tackling organised crime.
“We live in a world and at a time where crime knows no borders,” she said during a press appearance. “In places like the Costa del Sol, we’re seeing developments that, as they spread, inevitably affect us.”
One sentence. One plea.
“We need backup.”
Known faces, long histories
Both Lyons and Monaghan were no strangers to Glasgow police or Scotland’s criminal courts.
Monaghan was previously acquitted of attempted murder in 2017 in a high-profile trial. He survived a previous shooting attempt outside a Glasgow school in 2018. Lyons, meanwhile, was linked with the infamous Lyons clan, which has had bloody run-ins with the Daniels gang for nearly two decades.
Their deaths are not minor news in Glasgow. They were, in many ways, symbols of a gang feud that has defined the city’s organised crime landscape.
Here’s a glance at recent developments in that feud:
| Event | Location | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firebombing of flat | Maryhill, Glasgow | March 2025 | Under investigation |
| Shooting of man in his 30s | Gilmerton, Edinburgh | April 2025 | Arrest made |
| Armed raid at garage | Rutherglen | May 2025 | 3 suspects charged |
| Fuengirola shooting | Spain | June 2025 | Active investigation |
There’s a deep weariness among locals — people know the history, and they fear the cycle might start again.
Speculation spirals but answers still elusive
What’s murky is how these latest killings fit into the bigger picture.
Is this a message from rival gangs? Internal score-settling? Or a flare-up in international gang tensions that just happened to involve two Scots?
Nobody’s talking. And those who know the truth, aren’t saying a word — at least not yet.
The fear now is that this might not be the end. A source close to law enforcement said that while this killing may not have been ordered from Scotland, “there’s no guarantee there won’t be retaliation there.”
One sentence. Chilling thought.
