Noose tightening around Kinahan cartel, US ambassador claims

The “noose” is tightening around senior members of the Kinahan cartel, US ambassador to Ireland Claire Cronin has said.

Speaking after a meeting with Tánaiste Micheál Martin and United States special envoy to Northern Ireland Joe Kennedy III to discuss economic development, Ms Cronin was asked about previous financial awards offered by American authorities to catch the gang leaders.

She said the US was still fully committed to catching those involved.

[ Fintan O’Toole: The demise of the Kinahans will usher in another equally vile crew ]

[ How the Kinahans remodelled their drug operation in Ireland ]

“I think we have seen since last April when we made that announcement, which was a state department-headed programme, and we worked in conjunction with our partners and law enforcement, we have seen, for lack of a better word, the noose tightening a little bit around the Kinahans. There have been some recent arrests.

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“I know that it has been a great example of co-operation between our governments and the multiple agencies involved. I am very pleased about the outcome to this point and optimistic as to where it will head in the future.”

Last year, authorities in the United States offered a reward of up to $15 million for information that might lead to the arrest or conviction of three senior Kinahan cartel members.

Irish, American and British law enforcement launched a major joint action against the Kinahan cartel in a bid to frustrate their criminal and financial international operations.

[ US offers rewards of up to $15m for arrest or conviction of Kinahans ]

[ Kinahan cartel collapse: ‘They’re in disarray because they don’t know what’s next and who’s next’ ]

The action, which was unprecedented, was accompanied by the most specific public release of information about cartel members, including their addresses and the numbers of their passports, both genuine and fake.

Earlier this month, Liam Byrne, the leader of the Dublin-based drug gang that ran the Kinahan cartel’s operations in Ireland, was arrested in Spain. The 42 year old was wanted by Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) after being connected to alleged gun running.

It is alleged messages intercepted from EncroChat, the secret messaging system used by criminals until it was infiltrated in 2020 by international law enforcement, linked Byrne to the guns trade.

Police moved in and detained him while he was having a meal in a restaurant in the Alcudia area with members of his family. It appears he believed he had arrived in Mallorca undetected, but that was not the case as he was being tracked in an operation between Spanish, British and Irish law enforcement.