Arthur Thompson (September 1931 – 13 March 1993) was a Scottish gangster who was active in Glasgow from the 1950s and took charge of organised crime in the city for over thirty years.

Born in September 1931[1] in the industrial area of Springburn, Glasgow,[2] Arthur Thompson began his career as a money lender, and was said to crucify those who did not repay their debts, by nailing them to floors or doors.

[5] Thompson also survived two further attempts on his life; he was shot in the groin outside his home – "The Ponderosa" in Provanmill, named after a ranch in the Western television series Bonanza – in 1985.

[4] On 18 August 1991 Thompson's son Arthur Jr (nicknamed "Fatboy") died after being shot three times[7] outside the family home,[8] "The Ponderosa".

[7] A former enforcer for the Thompson family, Paul Ferris, was arrested, charged with the murder[9] and remanded to HM Prison Barlinnie.

[10] On the day of Thompson Jr's funeral a car was found containing the bodies of two friends of Ferris, Robert Glover and Joe Hanlon, who were also suspected of involvement in his death and had been killed by gunshots to the back of the head and the anus.