Nine linked to Costa’s Irish Godfather

Nine people have been arrested in Dublin who are believed to be linked to Christopher Kinahan, the so-called ‘Irish Godfather’.

In May last year, Kinahan, the alleged leader of a criminal organization disbanded in 2010 in an operation against the Irish mafia based in Malaga, was brought back to Spain to be held accountable to the Spanish justice system.

He was released from prison in December 2010 on bail of €60,000.

At the time, the Estepona courts ordered Kinahan to appear in court every week and he was forbidden to leave the country.

He was extradited in 2011 to Belgium through a European arrest warrant for alleged money-laundering offences.

He was one of 30 people arrested in May 2010 as part of a joint operation carried out by police in Ireland, UK and Spain linked to drug and arms trafficking, and money laundering.

Most of the arrests took place in Marbella, Estepona and Fuengirola, and 100 properties were searched in three countries.

Now, five Irishmen and four Eastern Europeans have been arrested in Ireland and the Gardai seized 200 kilos of hashish, 150 kilos of marihuana, almost 100,000 Ecstasy tablets and what appeared to be cocaine, as well as six firearms, from several locations used to hide the drugs.

The raid was the result of a two-month operation.