A MAN was killed yesterday in a drive-by shooting only a month after surviving an earlier assassination attempt.

Mr John Simpson, 24, who was the target of an execution bid on New Year's Day, appears to have been a victim of a Glasgow gangland feud, which may have been drugs related.

He was seriously injured in the attack in the Pollok area of the city yesterday and died a short time later in Southern General Hospital.

Police last night declined to confirm reports Mr Simpson had been shot four times in the chest at point-blank range.

It is thought a fifth bullet missed him and hit the wheel of a car parked nearby. No-one else was injured in the shooting. A Strathclyde Police spokesman could not comment on suggestions a three-strong team had carried out yesterday's assassination.

The incident took place in broad daylight as Mr Simpson, who is believed to have been released from prison a few days before Christmas, was crossing Brockburn Road at Linthaugh Road, Pollok, at about 2.50pm. He was shot by a person or persons within a car.

He had recently been released from Southern General after recovering from the earlier attack.

Police, who have not released Mr Simpson's full address for ''operational reasons'', were last night involved in an armed siege at a house in Levernside Road, Pollok.

However, they continued a hunt for the killer or killers after a search of the premises. They said it had ''proved negative''.

Earlier, police followed a car thought to be connected with the incident.

Eyewitnesses said two armed policemen wearing bullet-proof vests approached and searched an R-reg dark blue Vauxhall Cavalier at the Asda supermarket in Govan.

There were other police officers close to the entrance of the supermarket.

Two women were detained at the supermarket and two men were detained nearby in Mosspark Boulevard.

All four were interviewed at Pollok police station but no charges had been made early today.

Chief Superintendent Richard Gray, divisional commander based at Pollok police station, where an incident room has been set up, said: ''The inquiry is ongoing but we are making an appeal to any witnesses to come forward.

''All that we can really say at the moment is that we are following a definite line of inquiry - how long

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that takes to complete depends on information from the public, but we are working very hard on that.''

Anyone with information should contact the incident room on 0141-532 5600.

Mr Simpson, who was originally from Pollok, was critically injured on January 1 when three masked gunmen burst into the house where he was staying in Glenmuir Drive in the Priesthill area of Glasgow. He underwent emergency surgery at Southern General for what was believed to have been a head injury.

Police said the attackers also threatened the woman householder, who was a relative of Mr Simpson.

Police, who warned that the people who carried out the attack were ''extremely dangerous'', have so far made no arrests in connection with the Priesthill shooting.

The officer leading the murder investigation, Detective Inspector Tom Cunningham, said at the time: ''There would appear to be no other motive for this shooting other than a deliberate attempt on Mr Simpson's life. This was a deliberate assassination attempt. they went to that house with the sole intention of killing him.''