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Politician warns Scotland is becoming a ‘safe haven’ for the Kinahan Cartel
‘Scotland is the drugs death capital of Europe and we cannot allow our communities to become a safe haven for parasitical gangsters’
Neil FetherstonhaughSunday World
23rd August 2022 11:29
An outspoken politician has warned that Scotland is in danger of becoming a “safe haven” for the Kinahan Cartel who have links to the country’s drugs gangs.
Conservative MSP Russell Findlay claimed that the Scottish National Party’s Justice Secretary Keith Brown has failed to address a crime wave brought about by the arrival of the Irish drug cartel in Scotland.
Mr Findlay who has spoken about the that posed by gangs such as the Kinahan, said there has not been a single meeting called to discuss what has been described as criminals roaming around Scotland’s drug world with a £4million bounty on their heads.
Mr Findlay has raised the issue again after an FOI request revealed that there have been no talks between the Scottish Government and the US or Irish authorities.
And there is no correspondence between the Holyrood parliament and the National Crime Agency and Police Scotland in the records either.
He went on to stress that it was “vitally important” that Scotland does not become “a safe haven” for the Kinahans or Scotland’s domestic drug gangs whose ill-gotten gains “contaminate mainstream society”.
The former crime journalist, blamed the Scottish Government for falling short on their duty, saying: “For the SNP (Scottish National Party) justice secretary to have had no recorded meetings about the Kinahan cartel is astonishing.
“The Kinahans are prominent in Scotland with extensive connections to Scottish organised criminals. Indeed, one prominent Irish journalist describes them as an ‘Irish-Scottish’ entity, so strong are the bonds,” said Mr Findlay.
In April US law enforcement announced significant sanctions against cartel founder Christy Kinahan snr and his sons, Daniel and Christopher jnr, as well as four of their associates.
Rewards of up to $5 million have also been offered by the Americans for information that would lead to the conviction of any of the three Kinahans or for significant information that could degrade the cartel.
However, Mr Findlay said that when US-led sanctions were revealed, the nationalist government in Edinburgh “seems to have shown zero interest”.
“Scotland is the drugs death capital of Europe and we cannot allow our communities to become a safe haven for parasitical gangsters,” he said.
“This gang and their Scottish cronies flood our country with drugs and have grown obscenely rich by killing thousands of Scots.
“These revelations suggest the SNP government is guilty of dangerous complacency. They must wake up to the threat.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government does not interfere with operational matters for Police Scotland or other law enforcement agencies.
“The key role of the Scottish Government is to continue working with law enforcement agencies in Scotland to identify actions, mechanisms and if appropriate legislative steps to tackle organised crime and reduce the harm they cause to our communities.”
In May of this year, Mr Findlay also spoke about the extent that organised crime had infiltrated football in Scotland.
He had raised the issue in parliament when he described how the Kinahan crime cartel, that had just been sanctioned by the US Government, was working in partnership with the feared Glasgow-based Lyons gang.
Mr Findlay, who was the victim of an acid attack at his home in 2015, discussed the connections with the notorious Glasgow-based Lyons gang and the Kinahans with Sunday World’s Nicola Tallant.
“I don’t know how it happened but as the Costa Del Sol is a bit of a criminals’ playground, the Lyons formed an allegiance with the Kinahans.
“They had this Kinahan backing, if you like, but they also had the drugs importation on a vast scale. It’s all very well controlling the streets but half the problem is getting regular, safe consistent supplies in.
“So, it was quid pro quo in that the Lyons could give them access to Scotland right across the central belt from Glasgow to Edinburgh.”
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