The United Arab Emirates has extradited 49-year-old Daniel Kinahan to Ireland, where he is expected to appear before the Special Criminal Court in Dublin charged in connection with running a transnational criminal organisation.
Kinahan left Dubai aboard an Irish government jet on Sunday after the Dubai Court of Cassation issued a final ruling approving his extradition under the UAE-Ireland extradition treaty, according to a joint statement from the two countries’ justice ministers.
What Kinahan is accused of
Kinahan was arrested in Dubai in April on an Irish warrant alleging serious organised-crime offences. The joint Emirati-Irish statement said he had been accused of leading an organised criminal group, murder and illicit narcotics trafficking. Kinahan has previously denied being a crime boss; a lawyer representing him told the BBC in 2021 that he had no criminal record or convictions and that the allegations were false.
What happens after his arrival
Kinahan is expected to be taken directly to the Special Criminal Court and then transferred to the high-security Portlaoise Prison, according to Ireland’s RTÉ. Irish media reported that armed police, the military and prison authorities were involved in a major security operation ahead of his arrival.
The wider investigation
US authorities identified Kinahan in 2022 as one of three leaders of the Kinahan Organised Crime Group, which US and European authorities have linked to drug trafficking, money laundering, firearms trafficking and murder. They imposed sanctions on him and other family members and offered a $5m reward for information leading to their arrests.
Kinahan is the second senior figure linked to the group to be extradited from Dubai. Sean McGovern, described by an Irish judge as a senior lieutenant, was extradited after his arrest in 2024 and was sentenced in June to 24 years in prison after pleading guilty to directing organised crime and attempted murder. The group is also involved in a long-running feud with the rival Dublin-based Hutch gang.
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