Wikipedia
Kinahan Organised Crime Group
The Kinahan Organised Crime Group (KOCG), also known as the Kinahan Cartel, is a major Irish transnational organised crime syndicate alleged to be the most powerful in Ireland and one of the largest organised crime groups in the world.[9][10][11] It is also established in the United Kingdom, Spain and the United Arab Emirates.[12] It was founded by Christy Kinahan in the 1990s. His eldest son, Daniel manages the day-to-day operations of the family's criminal group.[13] Estimated reports have credited them with wealth of up to €1 billion.[14][15]
2022 wanted posters of Christy and Christopher Jr. Kinahan by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) | |
| Founded | 1990s |
|---|---|
| Founded by | Christopher Vincent Kinahan, Sr.[1] |
| Founding location | Dublin, Ireland |
| Years active | 1990s–present |
| Territory | Ireland, United Kingdom, Spain, United Arab Emirates |
| Criminal activities | Drug trafficking, money laundering, murder, arms trafficking, extortion, blackmailing[2] |
| Allies | |
| Rivals | |
The Kinahan Cartel has had an ongoing feud with the Hutch Gang since 2015, which has resulted in 18 deaths as of August 2021.[16][17][18][19]
Background
The Kinahan Organised Crime Group was founded by Christy Kinahan in the late 1990s and early 2000s while Ireland's "Celtic Tiger" period of rapid economic growth was occurring.[11][20] A native Dubliner, Kinahan's first convictions date back to the late 1970s and involved house breaking, car theft, burglary, handling stolen goods and forgery.[21][22] The group reportedly began as a street gang of inner-city drug dealers in Dublin, but soon grew on a global scale to become the current multi-million dollar criminal network that it is today.[23] Christy Kinahan served as the direct leader of the organisation up until the position was passed on to his son Daniel Kinahan.[24] Since then, Irish courts have concluded that the group is a murderous organisation involved in the international trafficking of drugs and firearms.[25][26]
On 12 April 2022, the United States Department of State announced the offering of rewards of up to US$5 million under the Narcotics Rewards Program for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Kinahan family members. The reward is offered jointly with the Garda Síochána, National Crime Agency, and Drug Enforcement Administration.[27][28][29] The seven key members were named as: Daniel Kinahan; Christopher Kinahan; Christopher Kinahan Jnr; veteran Dublin-born criminal Bernard Clancy; Daniel Kinahan’s “advisor and closest confidant" Sean McGovern; former KOCG enforcer now Marbella-based money launderer "Johnny Cash" Morrissey; and Ian Dixon who was arrested over the 2015 Costa del Sol murder of Gary Hutch but never charged.[30]
Despite the sanctions being imposed on the group, it was reported in August 2022 that Spanish-based associates of the Kinahan cartel were continuing to operate multi-million-euro drug shipments.[31] "Johnny Cash" Morrissey and his wife Nicola were arrested in Marbella, Spain on Monday 13 September 2022.[30]
In February 2023, a raid on a business in the Long Mile Road area of Dublin led to the seizure of equipment, the arrest of eight people and 40 kg of cocaine.[32][33] Over 2,000 containers of nitric oxide were seized, as well as €78,000 in cash, a hydraulic drugs press, communications devices, mixing agent and a money counter.[32][33] Two of those arrested were later released.[32][33]
In 2023 Edin Gačanin, who is involved in organized crime in Bosnia and Herzegovina was sanctioned by the US who cited "close links" to Daniel Kinahan after broken encrypted chats show how the Kinahan cartel was involved in €350m coke plot. The US named Daniel Kinahan, his father Christy Kinahan Snr and Christy Kinahan Jnr as the three key players of the Kinahan gang.[34]
Kinahan family and associates
A chart of persons the Office of Foreign Assets Control designates for sanctions
The Kinahan crime family is primarily involved in the drug trade.[35]
- Christy Kinahan – Also known as "the Dapper Don",[36] Christy is the founder of the Kinahan crime group.[37] He has served prison sentences in Ireland, The Netherlands and Belgium, including six years for dealing heroin, two-and-a-half years for possession of cocaine, and four years for money laundering.
- Daniel Kinahan – Christy's eldest son, and allegedly manages the day-to-day operations of the family's criminal empire.[37] A boxing promoter, Daniel has worked as an advisor for Tyson Fury.[38]
- Christopher Kinahan (Christy Jnr) – younger son of Christy Kinahan, is wanted by the US Department of State and there is a reward of up to $5 million leading to his arrest and/or conviction for participating in transnational organised crime, namely narcotics trafficking and money laundering.[39]
- Imre "The Butcher" Arakas – A notorious Estonian hitman, he is known for committing murders in several European countries, such as Estonia, Lithuania, Spain and Ireland, in addition to having killed dozens of members of the Russian Mafia.[40]
- Declan "Mr Nobody" Brady – One of Daniel Kinahan's closest associates, he holds some of the most important positions within the gang: he is the main logistics man and quartermaster of the Kinahans, being primarily responsible for the gang's weapons depot and for their safety as a result.[41]
- Ross Browning - A native of Dublin, Ireland, he is one of the Kinahan family's top lieutenants. Considered Daniel Kinahan's right-hand man, he has been responsible for the operations of the Kinahan crime syndicate in Ireland for over two decades and as a result, he has become a priority target for the Gardaí and the CAB due to his proximity to Daniel Kinahan.[42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49]
- Liam Byrne – A notorious and dangerous Dublin gangster, he is a high-ranking member of the Kinahan Family. He comes from a criminal family led by his father James Byrne (who was an associate of notorious Irish gangster Martin "The General" Cahill) and is the older brother of David Byrne, an associate of the Kinahan Family who was murdered on 5 February 2016 at the Regency Hotel in Whitehall, Dublin.
- Trevor Byrne - currently serving 17.5 years in jail for firearms offences and robbery is suspected of being a gunman in the murder of Eddie Hutch.[50]
- Lee Canavan - convicted of the 2016 murder of David Douglas along with Freddie Thompson, and given a mandatory life sentence. Canavan’s half-brother Gareth Brophy and Nathan Foley were convicted of being involved and given 9.5 years and 6 years in prison.[51]
- Bernard Patrick Clancy – A childhood friend of Daniel Kinahan. He was previously jailed for drugs offences on the Costa del Sol. Sanctioned by OFAC.[10][52]
- Ian Thomas Dixon – He has arranged multiple payments on behalf of Daniel Kinahan, as well as moved bulk currency in Ireland and the United Kingdom.[25]
- Douglas 'Oscar' Glynn - A footsoldier jailed for 8 years in 2023 for managing a drugs warehouse containing €1.4m of drugs. Glynn is currently serving a 6.5 year sentence for involvement in the foiled plot to murder James 'Mago' Gately.[53]
- Jamie Griffin – A footsoldier for the gang, he is the younger brother of Leon Griffin. Pleaded guilty to a violent assault in December 2012.[54]
- Leon Griffin – A footsoldier for the gang, he is a friend of Freddie Thompson and is known to be one of the most brutal and volatile criminals not only in the Kinahan family, but in all of Dublin.[55] Jailed for 3 years after a high speed chase through Dublin in 2019.[56]
- Gerard "Hatchet" Kavanagh – He was believed to have worked as a debt collector and enforcer for the Kinahans.[57] He was shot dead on 5 September 2014 in Elivira, Marbella. Aged 44 at the time of his death, he had been heavily involved in the drug trade for over 20 years.[58]
- Thomas "Bomber" Kavanagh – One of the leaders of the Kinahan family (he is the second-in-command),[59] he is considered by many to be Ireland's most feared mobster and is considered the main name of the Kinahan family in the United Kingdom.[60][61] He is known to be brutal and violent, being responsible for at least seven murders.[62] He is also known for being the head of the UK branch of the Kinahan gang.[63] Currently in jail in England serving a 21 year sentence.[64]
- Johnathan Keogh was convicted in November 2018 along with his sister Regina Keogh and Thomas Fox of the murder of Gareth Hutch.[65][66] All three were sentenced to life imprisonment.[65][66]
- Gerard Mackin - reportedly a Kinahan "enforcer", was extradited from Spain in 2022 before pleading guilty to money laundering. Mackin had previously been tried twice for the murder in 2007 of Edward Burns, a taxi driver, in Belfast. Convicted at the first trial, a retrial collapsed when witnesses refused to testify. He had also been convicted in 2017, for a "depraved and barbaric" assault where a man was nailed to a kitchen floor with a nail-gun.[67]
- Sean Gerard McGovern – Daniel Kinahan's advisor and closest confidant. He has managed communications on behalf of Daniel Kinahan and sells multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine.[25]
- John Francis "Johnny Cash" Morrissey – Manchester, England-born former Cork restaurateur, Morrissey worked as an enforcer before fleeing Ireland in the early 2000s after reportedly being involved in a bid to harm an Irish Criminal Assets Bureau officer. Based in Marbella, Spain ever since, Morrissey allegedly became the KOCG drugs shipping organiser and money launderer. On the morning of Monday 13 September 2022, a combined force of six enforcement agencies led by the Spanish Civil Guard's elite Central Operative Unit, arrested Morrissey at his villa in Marbella - the first of the seven men named by the United States' Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in April 2022 to be arrested. Morrissey had gained notoriety from being part of the team publicising his wife Nicola's Scottish-based Nero Drinks Company Ltd, which was thought to be part of Morrissey's €200 million annual money-laundering operation, leading to her arrest as well at the same time.[30]
- Ciaran O'Driscoll – A footsoldier for the gang, he has a criminal record that ranges from possession of illegal drugs to attempted murder.[68] Jailed for 11.5 years in 2017.[69]
- Paul Rice – A high-ranking member of the Kinahan family, he is known for being extremely violent and because of this, he is considered a high-value target by other enemy gangs.[70][71][72]
- Freddie Thompson – A cousin of Liam Byrne, he was the head of the Dublin branch of the Kinahan gang from 1997 to 2008, when he had to leave Ireland over a feud he had with the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA).[73] He is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of David Douglas.[74]
References
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- ^ Townsend, Mark (16 April 2022). "Catching the Kinahans: the officers risking their lives to jail Ireland's most violent gang leaders". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Hand, John (25 April 2022). "Kinahan gang's drug route exposed as cartel 'employs African thugs to threaten EU port workers'". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ MacNamee, Garreth (1 December 2017). "Kinahan cartel under surveillance in Dubai after senior member met Italian mafia boss there". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ MacNamee, Garreth. "Italian mafia boss with close ties to Daniel Kinahan 'to turn state witness' following arrest". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
- ^ O'Reilly, Alison (7 May 2022). "Kinahan cartel carried out 'at least 20' murders across Europe". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Foy, Ken (12 May 2016). "Kinahan cartel thug boasts: I can buy off any 'New IRA' hitmen". Irish Independent. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Hand, John (30 December 2021). "Kinahan cartel's Irish operation continues to crumble as net closes on mobster Daniel". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Pogatchnik, Shawn (12 April 2022). "US puts $5M bounty on heads of Irish gang based in Dubai". Politico. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ a b Fetherstonhaugh, Neil (12 April 2022). "Revealed: The seven 'key members' of Kinahan cartel hit with sanctions by the US". Sunday World. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ a b "Kinahan Cartel: US sanctions cartel leader with links to Tyson Fury". BBC News. 12 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Kinahan crime gang: United Arab Emirates freezes assets after US sanctions". BBC News. 21 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ Schiller, Robin (17 May 2022). "Revealed: How codenames and gang tip-offs from $5m bounty bring endgame closer for Kinahan cartel". Irish Independent. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Explained: US sanctions on Kinahan gang members". BreakingNews.ie. 12 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ Gillespie, Tom (3 May 2022). "Kinahan cartel: 'Nobody is untouchable' - how the net is tightening around Ireland's $1billion drug gang". Sky News. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ Foy, Ken (11 September 2017). "Garda crackdown on crime has cost Kinahan gang millions as big hitters face criminal charges". Irish Independent. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
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- ^ Güell, Oriol (7 November 2016). "Why is Irish drug trafficker Christy Kinahan still at liberty on the Costa del Sol?". EL PAÍS. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
- ^ Reynolds, Paul (31 August 2020). "Two Kinahan gang members jailed over plot to kill Patrick Hutch". RTÉ News and Current Affairs. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
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- ^ Lally, Conor (8 February 2016). "Who is the kingpin behind Irish-led cartel based in Spain?". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
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- ^ Healy, Paul (13 April 2022). "Father of Kinahan cartel victim Michael Barr from Co Tyrone hopes for justice". Belfast Live. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Reynolds, Paul (18 May 2020). "Daniel Kinahan 'reinventing' himself as boxing promoter". RTÉ News and Current Affairs. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ a b c "Treasury Sanctions Notorious Kinahan Organized Crime Group". United States Department of the Treasury. 11 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Cooperating at an International Level in Protecting Communities from Organised & Serious Crime" (PDF). www.garda.ie. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Department of State Offers Reward for Information to Bring Three Irish Transnational Criminals to Justice". United States Department of State. 12 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Kinahan organised crime group sanctioned by US Department of the Treasury". Europol. 12 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Kinahan crime group hit with worldwide financial sanctions". National Crime Agency. 12 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ a b c Gerard Couzens (15 September 2022). "Kinahan cartel dealt devastating blow as 'key' man Johnny Morrissey arrested in Costa del Sol". Sunday World. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
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- ^ a b c MacNamee, Garreth (2023-02-15). "Kinahan gang's supply chain decimated as gardaí continue to dismantle criminal empire". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
- ^ a b c Reynolds, Paul (2023-02-15). "Six questioned after raid at 'cocaine mixing factory' linked to Kinahans". RTÉ News. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
- ^ "US sanctions Bosnian super-cartel drugs boss over 'close links' to Kinahan gang". 16 March 2023.
- ^ MacIntyre, Darragh (2020). "The suspected gangster at the heart of world boxing". BBC. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
- ^ "'Dapper Don' Christy Kinahan won't be worried about a charge of passport fraud, but the net is closing in on the cartel he built". Irish Independent. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ a b "Two veteran Irish criminals, one vicious feud, two cold-blooded assassinations. Who's who in the Gang War". Irish Independent. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ Corby, Donagh (12 April 2022). "Tyson Fury's promoter to sever all ties with boxing adviser Daniel Kinahan". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Christopher Kinahan, Jr". 12 April 2022.
- ^ "'He is an unusual celebrity': Colourful career of Estonian hitman foiled by gardaí". The Irish Times. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "The women who laundered cash for the Kinahan crime gang". RTÉ News and Current Affairs. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ Dublin Live: Kinahan cartel lieutenant bought house with '8-year-old son’s chequebook'
- ^ Sunday World: MOB MILLIONS | Ross Browning is the Kinahan cartel’s ‘principal’ man in Ireland, CAB tells court
- ^ Sunday World: CIVIL WAR | Kinahan boss Ross Browning used drug mule as ‘link man’ to Mr Flashy's Gucci Gang court hears
- ^ Sunday World: ASSETS TARGETED | Kinahan cartel’s Irish network exposed by CAB in case against gangster Ross Browning
- ^ Sunday World: CRIME TARGET | CAB case against Kinahan cartel lieutenant Ross Browning to be heard in October
- ^ Sunday World: CASE ADJOURNED | Kinahan Cartel lieutenant Ross Browning puts up no defence in CAB case
- ^ Sunday World: CAB CASE | Kinahan cartel member Ross Browning and associates told to have affidavits before the High Court by December
- ^ RTÉ: Families of Kinahan gang member Ross Browning reject CAB claims at High Court
- ^ "Kinahan gunman Trevor Byrne arrested for SECOND time over Eddie Hutch feud killing". 9 April 2023.
- ^ "Student Lee Canavan who was part of Kinahan 'murder cell' jailed for life for Daithi Douglas killing". 3 June 2021.
- ^ "Bernard Patrick CLANCY". 11 April 2022.
- ^ "Kinahan Cartel manager Douglas 'Oscar' Glynn jailed for managing drugs warehouse". 16 March 2023.
- ^ {{cite web |title='Complete loose cannon' - Kinahan's new enforcer 'causing terror' in capital |url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_Foreign_Assets_Control |date=14 November 2016
- ^ "More jail time for one of capital's most volatile criminals who worked for Kinahan cartel". Irish Independent. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ "Some Never learn? The Family in the car are so Lucky to be Alive, a Soft Sentence?". 14 March 2021.
- ^ Lally, Conor. "Irish man shot dead in suspected gangland murder in Spanish bar". The Irish Times. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ Lally, Conor. "Gardaí and Spanish police seek motive for Kavanagh killing". The Irish Times. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
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- ^ "Profile: Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh - the Kinahans' 'main man' in UK and a criminal career which began five decades ago in Dublin". Irish Independent. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
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- ^ "Senior Kinahan Group member Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh jailed in UK for 21 years". TheJournal.ie. Press Association. 2022-03-28. Retrieved 2022-03-28.
- ^ a b O'Brien, Fergal (2 November 2018). "Three given life sentences for murder of Gareth Hutch in 2016". RTE News. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
- ^ a b O'Riordan, Alison. "Special Criminal Court convicts three people for murdering 'Monk' nephew Gareth Hutch". thejournal.ie.
- ^ "Kinahan enforcer Gerard Mackin pleads guilty to money laundering charge". 13 March 2023.
- ^ "POSSESSION: Kinahan Cartel 'footsoldier' gets three-month sentence for having cannabis in prison". Sunday World. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
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- ^ Foy, Ken (7 June 2021). "Gangster Paul Rice calls in all debts after massive drugs seizure leaves him 'short of cash'". Sunday World.
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- ^ MacNamee, Garreth (2018-09-19). "Freddie Thompson moved to protective custody after row with another killer". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 5 August 2022.