I asked Ronnie if Arthur planned heist..he winked and said: I'm not a grass

>> Crime expert is convinced notorious Glasgow crime Godfather was mastermind of rail raid >> He claims Biggs dropped massive hint about Thompson during last interview before he died

- JOHN DINGWALL

A NOTORIOUS crimelord was the secret mastermind of the Great Train Robbery.

That's the claim by a top crime expert who was the last person to interview convicted train robber Ronnie Biggs.

Brian Anderson says he is convinced Glasgow gangster Arthur Thompson Snr was the brains behind the 1963 heist, which saw £2.6million stolen from a train travelling from Glasgow to London.

Brian photographed and interviewed Biggs shortly before his death but the robber was too ill to speak.

But asked if Thompson was the mastermind, Biggs winked and told Brian: "I'm not a grass".

Anderson, who reveals the story in his new book Faces 2, said: "I'm more convinced than ever that Arthur Thompson was behind the Great Train Robbery. He was the brains, the mastermind.

"The train left Glasgow Central Station. I think he tipped the wink to the London mob."

Thompson, who ruled Scotland's crime world from his Ponderosa home in Glasgow's east end, was friends with one of the train robbers, Buster Edwards, who attended the funeral of Thompson's murdered son, Arthur Jr.Thompson Snr arranged "hits" for London gangsters including the Krays and they would do the same for the Glasgow Godfather on his home turf.

Brian's suspicions were further raised when he photographed Biggs.

He arranged for the pair to meet in London and conducted the last interview and photo shoot.