bad business | 

Revealed: Gangster moll’s attempt to rebrand vodka company after US sanctions

Five months after Nero was sanctioned, both Johnny and Nicola were arrested at a villa on the Costa Del Sol.

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GANGSTER’S MOLL Nicola Morrissey changed the name of the Spanish arm of vodka company ‘Nero Drinks’ to ‘Ventas Bebidas Espirituales’ – a month after it was sanctioned by US authorities for allegedly laundering Kinahan cartel drug cash.

Company documents in Spain show Morrissey, the wife of incarcerated cartel money-launderer Johnny Morrissey, formally registered the company under the new identity – which translates as ‘Spiritual Drinks’ – on May 12th 2022.

The documents also show that it had more than €56,000 in stock ahead of the sanctions being imposed on Johnny Morrissey and Nero Drinks on April 11th 2022.

Sources in Spain confirmed to the Sunday World that Nero branded vodka remained on the shelves in Spanish supermarkets for several months after the sanctions were imposed.

Outlining its reasons for including Nero Drinks among the sanctioned individuals and companies connected to the cartel, the US Department of Treasury said: “Nero Drinks was designated for being owned or controlled by, directly or indirectly, John Morrissey.

“John Morrissey, who outwardly serves as the Nero Drinks’ brand ambassador, is heavily invested in Nero Drinks and has given a significant portion of the business to Daniel Kinahan to compensate for loads of drugs seized by law enforcement.

“John Morrissey controls and operates Nero Drinks through his wife, the primary shareholder, who is used as a frontperson for his interests.”

The company documents obtained by the Sunday World this week show that, as well as rebranding Nero Drinks in Spain, Nicola had filed a separate set of accounts for the business in that country.

The accounts make for similarly grim reading to those filed in the UK.

Accounts filed to December 2021, the most recent filed for the Spanish arm of Nero’s operations, show it had net current liabilities of more than €138,000.

The UK accounts for the same period show Nero had net current liabilities of €270,000.

Combined, the two arms of the company were saddled with more than €400,000 in debt.

Five months after Nero was sanctioned, both Johnny and Nicola were arrested at a villa on the Costa Del Sol.

She was last released without charge but Johnny remains in custody on allegations he spearheaded a €200 million money laundering scheme used by the Kinahan cartel.

The Sunday World understands the 62-year-old, nicknamed Johnny Cash, could be forced to spend up to seven more months in a jail cell in Alhaurin de la Torre prison before learning whether he is to be charged.

Detectives and police from six different police forces, including the Spanish Guardia Civil, gardaí and the powerful US Drug Enforcement Authority (DEA) took part in the operation to snare the Irish passport holder in Marbella in September of last year.

Johnny had been one of seven senior Kinahan cartel associates sanctioned by the US.

Months earlier, he and Nicola announced their intention to expand Nero’s operations into the US.

As part of the expansion, they also told how they planned to convert their former home in Calle Dinamarca into a five-star wellness retreat.

In an interview with Malaga’s Exclusive Life magazine, Nicola Morrissey said their plans for 2022 included “launching in Mallorca, Tenerife, the UK and we are finalising plans to launch in America!

“We are also opening an exclusive, five-star wellness retreat overlooking the sea in La Cala.

“We have been busy overseeing the luxury building project, gathering an expert team to deliver the latest therapies and treatments.

“We are due to open in April 2022 and bookings are already rolling in.”

The Sunday World revealed last July, how more than 17 months after the wellness retreat was scheduled to open, the property now lies in a state of abandonment and disrepair.