FUGITIVE HUNT
Glasgow machete maniac on run in Spain lives luxury lifestyle after forging links with major gangsters
by Rebecca GrayFUGITIVE Jonathan Kelly is living the high life in Spain after forging links with major gangsters, sources have revealed.
The machete fiend, 40, has been one of Scotland’s most wanted men since he went on the run six years ago.
Pals even spread rumours that Kelly, of Drumchapel, Glasgow, was dead in a bid to keep him one step ahead of cops.
But insiders claim the violent thug — last seen in September 2014 — was smuggled out of the country and is now mixing with crime bosses at luxury hotspots on the Costa del Sol.
A gangland source said: “It’s one thing to get out the country and hide. But to stay hidden for six years isn’t easily done. It just shows the serious connections that Kelly has made over in Spain.
“He has been well looked after and protected.”
The brute received sentences in excess of 16 years for a series of attacks between 2002 and 2010 — including one with a machete that left his victim paralysed.
But Kelly broke strict bail conditions and fled after being released from Low Moss nick in Bishopbriggs near Glasgow, in 2014.
He faces 10 more years behind bars if caught.
But insiders claim Kelly has indicated he will never return to Scotland and plans to stay at his Spanish bolthole.
The source added: “He knows if he’s caught he’s going back to jail for a long stretch, so he’ll not come back home now. That’s why the rumour was spread that he was dead — so that the police would stop looking for him.”
Kelly remains on the National Crime Agency’s Most Wanted List, where he is described as “extremely violent”.
The maniac is also said to pose a “high risk” to cops and the public.
A £5,000 reward is offered for info leading to the capture of Kelly — who uses various aliases and may have grown a beard and had cosmetic surgery to hide scars on his face.
The monster’s horrifying rap sheet also includes robberies, a string of savage assaults and having a blade in prison.
We revealed his campaign of terror in jail included an attempt to gouge out a warder’s eye.
Police Scotland vowed to continue their hunt for Kelly.
A spokesman said: “He is unlawfully at large six years after being last seen following his release from prison. His licence was revoked after he failed to comply with imposed conditions.”