Mike Ashley has "turned his guns" on the new Scottish Championship side Rangers regime by requisitioning a general meeting and asking for his £5M ($7.9M) loan to be repaid in full, according to Jackson & McGivern of the Scotland DAILY RECORD. The Sports Direct tycoon "made the highly aggressive move" one week after the Ibrox club's Interim Chair Paul Murray and Dir John Gilligan traveled south to "open ‘peace talks’ at his Shirebrook HQ in Derbyshire" -- but five days before cops "raided the premises as part of a probe into the commercial activities" of former Owners Craig Whyte and Charles Green. In a letter dated April 29, Ashley "demands to know the 'precise details' surrounding the recent delisting of the club from the AIM Stock Exchange," a move that was triggered when Rangers Dir Dave King "teamed up with other high profile shareholders to successfully remove Derek Llambias and Derek Leach from the boardroom." He also proposed resolutions that if "voted through, would force the new regime to hand back" a £5M "crisis loan which was agreed between Ashley, Llambias and Leach in January." Ashley had a "negative security clause written into the deal struck with the previous board, which means Rangers cannot use security of Ibrox stadium in order to raise funds with any third parties" (DAILY RECORD, 5/13). The BBC's Chris McLaughlin reported Ashley "owns a 9% stake in Rangers." If the loan is paid back, the club will "regain security over their branding, the Murray Park training ground and the club's retail rights." All are "currently held by Ashley" (BBC, 5/13).
