UNDER THREAT | 

Monk on the move – Cartel target Gerry Hutch changes Spanish HQ for third time in two years

‘The Kinahan mob would grasp any opportunity with both hands to murder the Hutch family patriarch’

Today at 07:00

Cartel target Gerry Hutch has changed the HQ for his Spanish real estate business for the third time in two years — in the clearest sign yet he believes he remains under threat from the Kinahan mob.

Spanish company documents show Hutch (60), who was acquitted of the murder of David Byrne in April, has registered the six-year-old company ‘Gerard Hutch SP’ as operating out of a luxury villa in the Las Tias Palmas area of Lanzarote.

The Sunday World is not disclosing the new address, as a search conducted by this newspaper shows the property is also registered as an Airbnb operating on the sunshine island.

Up until April this year, Hutch, who was on remand in Wheatfield Prison prior to his acquittal on the charge of Byrne’s murder, was using a lock-up in Calle Timple as the business’ headquarters.

He filed that address with the Registro Mercantil Central, Spain’s companies office, while on remand in Wheatfield.

Prior to that, the company’s address was listed as 2-12 Calle Pluton.

Gardai believe Hutch, who hasn’t been seen in the capital for a number of months, made a point of staying in the city following the conclusion of the Regency trial.

During this time, gardai did not have any intelligence to suggest there was an imminent threat to his life

According to sources, despite the fact the Kinahans were experiencing their own problems, the mob would “grasp any opportunity with both hands” to murder the patriarch of the Hutch family.

Hutch’s frequent change of address for his Spanish real estate company indicates that he also believes this to be the case.

The 60-year-old, who is reputed to own properties worth €12 million across the European Union, Eastern Europe and the UK, set up Gerard Hutch SP (Sole Proprietorship) in Spain in 2017 — a year after the Regency Hotel murder of David Byrne.

He listed the primary function of the business, which effectively saw him register to operate as a sole trader, as ‘management of real estate on a fee or contract basis’.

Because the business is run as a sole proprietorship, Hutch is not obligated to publish his business accounts.

The business allowed Hutch to obtain a tax ID — which also serves as a Spanish VAT number — granting him the status of legitimate businessman in the region.

Hutch used this status when fighting extradition to Ireland to face the murder charge.

He told the extradition hearing that he was not hiding from the authorities while living in Spain and was even paying taxes in his own name.

He also asked the Spanish extradition court that he be allowed to serve out any sentence handed down in Spain, as he has residency status and pays his taxes there.

Hutch’s property assets are understood to include his Clontarf house, believed to be worth almost €1million; an extensive Turkish property portfolio in Izmir and Kusadasi valued at €2million; a number of residential developments in Bulgaria and Hungary, and property in London valued at €2.5 million.

Gardai allege Hutch built this empire on the profits of the Marino Mart robbery and the Brinks Allied raids — a charge Hutch has always denied.

He instead maintains he made his fortune from compensation claims and subsequently invested funds in the housing market.

“I done a lot of business in property,” he told RTE’s Crime Correspondent Paul Reynolds in his only televised interview.

“It was a good time and that’s where I made me money.”

It’s understood Hutch remains the subject of an ongoing investigation into allegations he directed the activities of the Hutch Organised Crime Gang.

Hutch was taken from his cell by specialist gardai from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (NBCI) on September 28 last year and quizzed for more than 12 hours in connection with this probe.

The offence, similar to murder, carries with it the possibility of a life sentence.

After Hutch was released by the NBCI and returned to prison, gardai confirmed that a file was being prepared for the DPP.

Shamed ex-garda John ‘Spud’ Murphy, who is serving six years for possession of cannabis at his home, was also arrested as part of this probe.

Gardai are probing Murphy’s links to Hutch to determine if confidential information was passed on to the gang.