Suspected crime boss Kinahan spends first night in custody in Ireland

Suspected crime boss Daniel Kinahan, one of the world's most wanted men, has spent his first night in custody in Ireland after being extradited from Dubai. The 49-year-old appeared before Dublin's Special Criminal Court court on Sunday for a 13-minute non-jury hearing, where he was remanded in custody until 5 October. He has been charged with directing the activities of a criminal organisation between 18 October 2015 and 6 April 2017. When it was explained to Kinahan that he could file an application for bail through the High Court, he replied: "I think we all know I won't be getting bail, but thank you for your time." An Irish government jet carrying Kinahan landed in Dublin after 18:00 local time. He was arrested and charged upon his arrival. After his arrival and arrest at Baldonnell Casement Aerodrome on Sunday evening, he was directly transported under heavy police guard to the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin. All the benches were full in a packed courtroom of journalists, a number of solicitors from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), some members of the public and court clerks. In court, Kinahan was sitting on a wooden bench and wearing a black hooded top. He appeared before judges Patrick McGrath, Sarah Berkeley and Fiona Lydon, and rose to his feet when the three judges took their places. A police convoy escorted Kinahan at speed to the court. Kinahan did not have legal representation, and told the court that he did not have time to arrange this. When Judge McGrath suggested that he should be charged today and legal representation arranged later on, Kinahan replied: "If I have time, yes." Det Sgt Colm Davison told the court he arrested Kinahan earlier that evening. Judge McGrath asked Kinahan if he would like to appear at the next court sitting in person or via videolink. Kinahan asked if he had to "decide now" and it was explained to him he could make a decision later and notify the governor in the prison. A large-scale security operation was in place ahead of Sunday's hearing. Ahead of the extradition, the Irish Prison Service bought a bulletproof and bombproof van which can be used to escort prisoners who are considered high-risk. Kinahan was arrested in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in April. He appealed the extradition order over the past few months but his attempts were unsuccessful. Kinahan was not only wanted by the authorities in Ireland - the US Treasury Department once described the Kinahan cartel as one of the most dangerous in the world. The US government imposed sanctions on Kinahan in April 2022 after identifying him and other members of his family as leaders of the Kinahan organised crime cartel. He fought attempts to extradite him back to his native country, where the Kinahan cartel was involved in a long-running gangland feud that claimed 18 lives. On 5 February 2016, an attempt was made on Kinahan's life in what became known as the Regency Hotel shooting. One of his associates, David Byrne, was shot dead, while two others were shot and injured. This incident was part of what became known as the Hutch-Kinahan feud. Kinahan also had ties to the world of sport via his now defunct boxing management company MTK Global, which represented more than 100 boxers including Tyson Fury and Carl Frampton. The UAE and Ireland have an extradition treaty and on Sunday justice ministers from both jurisdictions issued a joint statement welcoming Kinahan's extradition. "The Irish national is regarded as one of the most high-profile individuals sought for prosecution in connection with transnational organised crime and is accused of directing an organised crime organisation," it stated. Irish Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan described the extradition as a "landmark of judicial cooperation between the two countries." The extradition agreement was previously used to extradite Sean McGovern, a "senior lieutenant" in the Kinahan organised crime group. He was sentenced to 24 years in prison in June for directing the activities of a criminal organisation. According to former Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, the gang is estimated to have made more than €1bn (£857,870,000) globally from its activities. A reward of up to $5m (£3.7m) has also been offered by the US for information on Daniel, his father Christopher Snr and brother Christopher Jnr. Daniel Kinahan's lawyer previously told BBC Panorama that he has no criminal record or convictions and allegations about him being a crime boss are false and have no evidential basis.