AGREEMENT PLAN

Major Kinahan cartel crackdown update as Dubai police make special offer to help bring down gang after Drew Harris visit

• Published: 22:53, 13 Sep 2023
• Updated: 22:53, 13 Sep 2023

POLICE in Dubai have offered to send their detectives to Dublin to help Gardai bring down the Kinahan cartel. 

This follows a visit to the Middle East by Garda Commissioner Drew Harris last week.

During the trip, Lieutenant General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri proposed a special legal agreement between Ireland and Dubai that would allow his officers to be deployed to Dublin.

The move would see Dubai detectives working alongside gardai from the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau to build up a case against Daniel Kinahan and other key leaders, according to the Irish Mirror.

Lt-Gen Al-Marri made the offer in a letter to Commissioner Harris following his unprecedented visit.

The gang has been the focus of authorities since the US offered a five-million-dollar reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of its leaders.

The US also imposed sanctions against senior members of the Kinahan cartel as part of a bid to target their operations in Ireland, the UK, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates.

The gang emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s as the most “powerful organised crime group” operating in Ireland, according to US authorities, which compared them to the Camorra in Italy and the Yakuza in Japan.

Its members are believed to frequently use Dubai as a hub for its illicit operations.

Gardai said in a statement: “Transnational organised crime gangs not only cause death and misery in the countries they originate from, but also in communities across the globe.

Tackling these gangs protects people here in Ireland and abroad.

“As part of these efforts, Commissioner Harris and senior Garda officers regularly liaise and work with international law enforcement partners to disrupt and dismantle these gangs.

“This includes the ongoing multi-national operation devised by An Garda Siochana to tackle the Kinahan transnational organised crime gang.

“It has also seen Commissioner Harris travel to the US, Colombia and Europe to further this activity.

“In addition, Commissioner Harris in conjunction with Departments of Justice and Foreign Affairs has expanded An Garda Siochana’s network of international liaison offices with new offices already established in the US, South America, and most recently in the Middle East, with a further office to be established shortly in Thailand.”

It comes after the sister of cartel murder victim Michael Barr said she hopes the Garda top cop’s visit to Dubai will lead to kingpin Daniel Kinahan’s extradition to Ireland.

EXTRADITION HOPES

Noeleen’s brother, 35, was shot dead by cartel contract killers Eamon Cumberton, 34, David Hunter 44 and Christoper Slator, 38, in April 2016.

She said: “I can’t imagine how I’d feel to see the leadership of this criminal organisation before a court.

“We were pleased a file had been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions but this visit to Dubai is another welcome development.

“This is great news for all the families whose lives have been destroyed by this criminal gang.

“It’s clear there are talks taking place behind the scenes and hopefully it can yield positive results.

“We all hope the next good news that we receive is that the Kinahan leaders are on a plane and on their way to Ireland or America.”