After years of evading law enforcement across borders, one of Europe’s most wanted gang leaders has finally been tracked down and arrested, bringing an end to a long-running international manhunt that
spanned multiple countries and identities.
The accused, identified as Daniel Kinahan, widely described as the leader of the Kinahan cartel, was arrested in Dubai on Wednesday in a joint operation involving Irish and United Arab Emirates authorities iafter a prolonged international manhunt.
Authorities in Dubai confirmed the arrest of “an Irish fugitive” with links to organised crime, without disclosing his identity. Irish media subsequently reported that the individual was Daniel Kinahan.
Ireland’s national police force, Garda Siochana, stated that a man in his 40s had been detained under a warrant issued by Irish courts. “An Garda Siochana has been steadfast in our determination that we would pursue those allegedly involved in serious Organised Criminal activity, wherever they go,” the force said in a statement.
Kinahan, 48, is likely to face charges in Ireland tied to the long-standing feud between the Kinahan cartel and the Hutch gang, a rivalry that has resulted in 18 killings since 2015. His ability to evade arrest over the years was largely due to constant relocation. He left Ireland after an attempted assassination during a boxing weigh-in at Dublin’s Regency Hotel, where his associate David Byrne was shot dead.
Following the incident, Kinahan moved to Spain and later settled in the United Arab Emirates, while law enforcement agencies across multiple countries continued tracking his activities and building cases related to organised crime and international drug trafficking.
In 2022, the United States Department of the Treasury announced a reward of $5 million for information that could lead to the arrest of Kinahan cartel leaders or the dismantling of its financial network.
The cartel is considered a major player in Europe’s drug trade and has been linked by investigators to a broader network described as a “super cartel”, believed to control a significant portion of cocaine distribution across the continent.
