Indonesia delays deportation of Scottish crime boss to Spain for murder and drug trafficking charges

DENPASAR, Indonesia (AP) - Indonesia delayed on Wednesday the deportation of a Scottish crime boss arrested on the resort island of Bali in connection with large-scale drug trafficking and money laundering.

Steven Lyons, a senior figure in an international crime syndicate who had spent months on the run, would now be deported on Thursday, according to Husnan Handano, a spokesperson for Bali's immigration office, without giving a reason for the delay.

Lyons, 45, was originally to be sent to Spain via Doha by Qatar Airways on Wednesday evening.

Lyons was detained on Saturday on arrival at Bali's Ngurah Rai international airport from Singapore, after the immigration system flagged him based on an Interpol Red Notice issued at Spain's request. A Red Notice is an alert issued by Interpol at the request of a member country for police worldwide to arrest a suspect for extradition.

The alleged leader of the Lyons crime family, he was based in Scotland and was wanted in Spain and Britain. He has been on Spain's wanted list for about two years, following a murder there in 2024.

Bali Police Chief Daniel Adityajaya said his arrest was part of a joint investigation involving Spanish and Scottish police.

Lyons is alleged to have led a transnational criminal network operating out of Scotland that controlled narcotics trafficking routes from Spain to the United Kingdom. His organized crime ring is suspected of using shell companies for money laundering in Europe and the Middle East - including in Spain, Scotland, England, Dubai, Qatar, Bahrain and Turkey.

Prior to his arrest in Bali, police in Scotland and Spain had carried out raids in connection with the case that led to several arrests. Suspects were also detained in Turkey, the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates.

Scottish media have reported that Lyons survived a 2006 shooting in Glasgow that killed his cousin and later moved to Spain before settling in Dubai, in the UAE. Last May, his brother and an associate were shot and killed in a suspected gangland shooting at a beachfront bar in Fuengirola, southern Spain.