JOHNNY ROTTEN 

Kinahan enforcer Johnny Morrissey ‘laundered massive €350k a DAY using ancient hawala code’ as wife ‘bailed’

• Spain
• 21:00, 15 Sep 2022
• Updated: 21:24, 15 Sep 2022

A KEY member of the ­Kinahan cartel helped his crime bosses launder a staggering €350,000 a day, according to Spanish police.

Detectives claim they have smashed the most important global criminal organisation in Spain specialising in cleaning dirty cash after arresting enforcer Johnny Morrissey at his Costa del Sol home.

They estimated the Irish passport holder — identified earlier this year by US authorities as a Kinahan enforcer — could have laundered over €200million in the last 18 months.

And in a fascinating insight into Daniel Kinahan’s mob, detectives revealed they believe the cash wasn’t physically moved out of Spain.

Instead, they say it was spread worldwide using an ancient money transfer system called ‘hawala’.

The informal method of moving money — which involves a network of brokers — is known to have been adopted by criminal gangs who use code numbers or tokens like banknotes torn in half to prove cash is due.

Morrissey is currently being held on suspicion of money laundering at his Costa del Sol home.

Wife Nicola was also lifted although she was released after a court appearance on Wednesday.

She’s the CEO of a ­Glasgow-based vodka firm called Nero Drinks that Spanish police are saying was used as a front.

She is thought to have been freed on bail and will remain under investigation.