Chasing the Kinahans: A mole in the disaffected ranks of the cartel might be what gardaí need to end mob reign

The jailing of Kinahan lieutenant Thomas ‘Bomber’ Kavanagh last week was a blow for the gang — but a far from fatal one

Daniel Kinahan has had a busy few months out and about in the Middle East

April 03 2022 02:30 AM

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Increasingly isolated in his palatial Dubai desert hideaway, cartel boss Daniel Kinahan has far bigger problems than An Garda Síochána. The leader of the Kinahan cartel, one of the most powerful drug empires in the world, was dealt a hammer blow last week when his top lieutenant and friend, Thomas ‘Bomber’ Kavanagh, was jailed in England for 21 years.

Kavanagh was locked up alongside two associates for his role in importing €36m worth of cocaine on behalf of the cartel. Bomber, named by the National Crime Agency (NCA) as the Kinahan cartel’s main man in the UK, is just the latest in a long list of senior figures in the gang to be jailed.