Suspected Irish crime boss lands in Dublin after being extradited from Dubai

The alleged leader of an Irish organised crime gang has been extradited to Ireland from Dubai to face charges that he ran an international drug smuggling and money-laundering empire with tentacles that stretched to Britain, Spain and the United States.

Air Tracker data showed an Irish Air Corps plane from Dubai landing on Sunday evening at a military airport on the outskirts of Dublin after courts in the United Arab Emirates refused to block his extradition.

The plane is believed to be carrying Daniel Kinahan, 49, who is expected to be taken directly to the Special Criminal Court in Dublin where he will face charges of directing an organised crime group. He will then be held at the high-security Portlaoise Prison about 145km (90 miles) southwest of the capital, Irish broadcaster RTE reported.

Ireland’s Special Criminal Court handles all organised crime and terrorism cases, as well as others where prosecutors believe the ordinary courts are inadequate to ensure the “effective administration of justice”. Cases are heard by a panel of three judges without a jury.

Irish media report that a huge security operation is under way to ensure Kinahan faces justice. It will include armed police, members of the armed forces and the prison service – which recently acquired a bombproof escort van to transport organised crime suspects, terrorists and other high-risk prisoners, Irish broadcaster RTE reported.

The security precautions come amid allegations that the Kinahans are engaged in a bloody gang war with another Irish organised crime group.

“Since February 2016, the (Kinahan Organised Crime Group) has been involved in a gang war with another group in Ireland and Spain, resulting in numerous murders, including of two innocent bystanders,” the US Treasury Department said in 2022, when it sanctioned six members of the Kinahan gang and three businesses linked to it.