Cartel boss Daniel Kinahan arrested in Dubai

Source: International Consortium of Investigative Journalists - ICIJ

Cartel boss Daniel Kinahan arrested in Dubai

Kinahan is wanted in Ireland in connection with a gangland feud linked to 18 murders.

By David Kenner
April 17, 2026

International drug kingpin Daniel Kinahan has been arrested in the United Arab Emirates, the government of Dubai announced today.

Kinahan is a leader of the Kinahan cartel, which has been involved in cocaine and heroin trafficking and linked to at least 20 murders across Europe. His detention came after an Irish court issued an arrest warrant tied to his alleged role in an international organized crime network.

Kinahan was arrested on April 15 under the terms of an extradition agreement between Ireland and the United Arab Emirates. Irish police said in a statement that the arrest “is another extremely important demonstration of the need for international law enforcement co-operation in tackling transnational organised crime.”

Kinahan, who is in his 40s, moved to Dubai after he was the target of an infamous 2016 assassination attempt at Dublin’s Regency Hotel. His presence in Dubai had long allowed him to evade U.S. and European law enforcement. He and his wife, Caoimhe Robinson, built a multimillion-dollar property portfolio in the Gulf emirate, ICIJ reported in 2024. They maintained some of these properties, which included a sprawling villa, even after Kinahan was hit with U.S. sanctions in 2022 for drug smuggling and money laundering.

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Read more: https://www.icij.org/news/2026/04/cartel-boss-daniel-kinahan-arrested-in-dubai/