An Irish jet carrying Daniel Kinahan has landed in Dublin after the suspected crime cartel boss was extradited from Dubai.
Mr Kinahan, 49, arrived at Casement Aerodrome at Baldonnel on Sunday evening after spending more than a decade away from the Emerald Isle.
The alleged crime boss was flown home after losing his final legal battle against extradition from the United Arab Emirates.
Mr Kinahan, who was accompanied on the flight by armed guards, will now appear before Ireland’s Special Criminal Court.
The 49-year-old will be held at the high-security Portlaoise Prison, around 90 miles southwest of Dublin.
He was charged after touching down on Irish soil, with Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly saying the arrest shows the force’s determination to “target transnational organised crime groups”.
Irish soldiers were mobilised for Mr Kinahan’s return after the alleged crime boss escaped assassination.
Mr Kinahan is accused of operating an international drug smuggling and money laundering empire which stretched across the British Isles, Spain and the United States.
Mr Kinahan, who was accompanied on the flight by armed guards, will now appear before Ireland’s Special Criminal Court
|
REUTERS
Thomas “Bomber” Kavanagh was sentenced to 21 years in prison after being accused of heading up the Kinahan gang’s operations in the UK.
Kavanagh lived in a mansion equipped with bulletproof glass and reinforced doors in Tamworth.
A police raid in 2019 recovered numerous weapons and £35,000 worth of cash in various currencies.
However, Mr Kinahan also built a boxing empire while living in Dubai.
People gather outside the Special Criminal Court where alleged Irish crime gang boss Daniel Kinahan is due to appear
|
REUTERS
He founded the management company MTK Global and established friendships with boxing heroes, including Tyson Fury.
The father-of-five was interviewed by Scottish podcaster James English just days before he was extradited.
Mr Kinahan admitted he had “not been an angel” but denied allegations of money laundering through boxing promotion.
He added: “I think I’ve already got life in prison, James.
A member of the Garda stands outside the Special Criminal Court where alleged Irish crime gang boss Daniel Kinahan is due to appear on charges of organised criminal activity
|
REUTERS
“I think we’re going to go through the dance now, and the circus, and then the character assassination even more.”
Mr Kinahan’s father, Christopher, still lives in Dubai but remains wanted after allegedly launching a heroin-importing cartel in the 1980s.
The family was also involved in a fatal feud with a rival gang led by Gerry Hutch.
Mr Kinahan was supposedly the target of an attack on the Regency Hotel in Dublin in February 2016.
Mr Kinahan, 49, arrived at Casement Aerodrome at Baldonnel on Sunday evening
|
PA
Gunmen disguised as armed police stormed a weigh-in at the Dublin hotel, killing Mr Kinahan’s associate David Byrne.
The attack was widely seen as a botched bid to assassinate Mr Kinahan, who had left the venue moments earlier.
Patrick Hutch was later charged over Byrne’s murder but the case collapsed.
Gerry Hutch was also arrested in Spain before being acquitted at trial in 2023.
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.