Kinahan bosses ‘can run but can’t hide’

Garda Assistant Commissioner John O'Driscoll speaking at Dublin City Hall after it was announced that the US government is offering $5m for information on the Kinahan crime gang. Picture: Niall Carson/PA Wire

The Kinahan bosses “can run but can’t hide” after being hit with a double whammy of financial sanctions and a m bounty per head for their arrest.

A European arrest warrant has been issued for Daniel Kinahan’s right-hand man, Sean McGovern, with pledges of future actions against the “apex” of the cartel.

A landmark international crackdown on the Kinahan Organised Crime Group (KOCG) by US, Irish, and UK law enforcement agencies reveals:

• Sweeping financial sanctions by US authorities freezing US accounts linked to cartel leaders and criminalising those who do business with seven named people and four companies;
• A US government reward of up to $5m each for the arrest of cartel founder Christopher Kinahan, boss Daniel Kinahan, and brother Christopher Jr or for information that will disrupt cartel activities;
• KOCG is now added to a list of top criminal threats to US national security, joining the Italian mafia and ultra-violent Mexican cartels;
• A European arrest warrant, for murder, for the most senior cartel leader to date, McGovern, described by US documents as Daniel Kinahan’s “adviser and close confidant” through which all dealings with Kinahan must go;
• 79 members and associates of the KOCG have been locked up in Ireland, including 12 for murder and 22 for attempted murder.

Garda Commissioner Drew Harris yesterday said it was a “landmark” day in the battle against the KOCG and said the measures will deal “a heavy blow, if not crippling blow”, to the cartel leadership.

He said it represented the “culmination of years of hard work”, going back to 2018, in which both An Garda Síochána and the British National Crime Agency supplied extensive and detailed documentation to the US authorities, upon which they based their sanctions.

Mr Harris pointed out that this was “only the first phase” of this operation, noting that the investigation will broaden and that agencies in the North, Spain, the Netherlands, and Australia “will undoubtedly participate in the next phases”.

“While most of the Kinahan leadership is now behind bars, it is true that some of the apex of the organisation is located in jurisdictions without treaties such as the UAE,” he said.

For the gang, he had this warning: “They can run, but they can’t hide from justice forever. From today, they will be running low on money and friends.”

John O’Driscoll, assistant Garda commissioner for serious and organised crime, said the investigation resulting in the European arrest warrant had been ongoing for some time.

“There are other investigations we are progressing — bearing in mind I have said all along that our target is mainly on the apex of this organised crime gang,” he said.

We continue to gather evidence and will continue to engage with the DPP, who will adjudicate is there enough evidence to prefer charges.

The Garda bosses were speaking at an event in Dublin’s City Hall, also attended by a delegation of US agencies, led by US ambassador to Ireland Claire Cronin, as well as the representatives of the National Crime Agency and Europol, the EU police co-operation agency.

The sanctions, issued by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control, direct that any property or interests in property in the US or in control of US people linked to those targeted must be blocked.

Ms Cronin said countering transnational organised crime was “an urgent priority” for president Joe Biden and the US government.

Office of Foreign Assets Control assistant director Gregory Gatjanis said: “As of today, the Kinahan transnational criminal organisation joins the ranks of Italy’s Camorra, Mexico’s Los Zetas, Japan’s Yakuza, and Russia’s Thieves in Law.”