AS MANY as 40 Irish gangland criminals and nine organised crime gangs from the Republic are operating across Europe in drug-smuggling, gun-running and other activities, according to the European police intelligence agency Europol.
The Irish criminals, who operate mainly in Spain, Holland and Britain, are being tracked by the agency, with intelligence provided by the Garda and international police forces.
They are working in small, flexible, cellular structures that mirror traditional terrorist cells and are sourcing weapons mainly left over from the war in the Balkans, according to Europol.
The Irish are becoming increasingly difficult to detect, and often operate for long periods before being noticed by police in their adopted countries. They are also proving adept at hiding in the legitimate economy, using banks, accountants and solicitors to facilitate activities including money-laundering and investing the proceeds of crime.
Director of Europol Rob Wainwright did not agree with the widely- held view that Irish gangland criminals living in Spain and Holland were not being properly investigated because those police forces had more pressing domestic priorities. “I don’t think any form of criminal endeavour is tolerated in any part of Europe,” he said at the Europol headquarters in the Hague, Holland, yesterday.
However, he said many international gangs were led by clever criminals operating “below the radar of national police forces . . . They are not just thugs, although they obviously will resort to violence. They are bright people who often mirror developments in the business world.”
There were 30-40 identified Irish gangland players across Europe and nine organised Irish gangs.
Mr Wainwright, who comes from a policing background in Britain’s Serious Organised Crime Agency, said Europol specialised in sourcing intelligence from police forces in EU member states. It then stored, analysed and shared the information to assist cross-border investigations.
He said there was a very high level of co-operation between the Garda and Europol: “In terms of its relative size in the EU, [Ireland] is contributing more [intelligence] than one would expect.”
Mr Wainwright added that one main focus of Europol was to disband criminal gangs and assist national police agencies in taking prosecutions. One of the most effective ways of disrupting organised crime was to identify and confiscate assets, through agencies like Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau. He said of the bureau: “It’s certainly held up as best practice in Europe. Many other countries have followed it, or at least aspects of it, including the UK.”
Europol sources said the Irish criminals were operating across Europe in the “northwest European hub”, a region that includes Ireland, France, Spain, Holland and some Scandinavian and Baltic states.
Europol officials who spoke to The Irish Times said the gangs specialised in the distribution of cocaine, cannabis, heroin and synthetic drugs such as amphetamines.
They were sourcing drugs from international cartels across Europe, with vast quantities of cocaine now being imported from South America via the Caribbean and west Africa into Holland and Spain.