Who Is Daniel Kinahan? All You Need To Know About the $5M Bounty

Daniel Kinahan, the founder of boxing promotion company MTK Global, which represented more than 100 boxers, including Tyson Fury and Carl Frampton, was recently arrested in the United Arab Emirates on charges of organized criminal activity following a one-year manhunt.

"Today’s arrest is another extremely important demonstration of the need for international law enforcement cooperation in tackling transnational organized crime," the gardai said in a statement, as per The Guardian.

According to the Dubai police, Kinahan was arrested on Wednesday, April 15.

Born on June 25, 1977, Daniel Kinahan is an Irish national who was previously named as the head of a drug cartel by the High Court in Dublin.

In 2022, the U.S. Treasury Department offered a reward of $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Daniel Kinahan for "participating in transnational organized crime, namely narcotics trafficking and money laundering."

"In addition, there is also a reward for information leading to the disruption of financial mechanisms of a transnational organized crime group," the KTCO news release added.

In the news release, the U.S. Treasury Department revealed that Kinahan Transnational Criminal Organisation (KTCO) was established in the 1990s in Dublin, Ireland, by Christopher Vincent Kinahan, father of Daniel. With time, he added his two sons, Daniel Joseph and Christopher, Jr., to his criminal organization.

As the KTCO became Ireland’s most powerful organized crime group, it quickly transcended international boundaries, the news release stated.

Upon their expansion, the Kinahan Transnational Criminal Organization began distributing co**ine and her**n throughout mainland Europe.

"In addition to narcotics trafficking, the Kinahans have engaged in money laundering, firearms trafficking, and murder," the news release added.

According to the BBC, Kinahan previously lived in Costa del Sol in Spain; however, he later shifted permanently to Dubai following the Hutch-Kinahan feud.

For context, in 2016, a feud between the KTCO and the rival Hutch dr*g trafficking gang escalated, leading to a shooting attack at a Dublin hotel. Although Daniel escaped the attack, the feud ultimately resulted in 18 homicides.

"The subsequent police response to the gang violence in Ireland led to gang member arrests and caused the KTCO leadership to shift their transnational organized crime operations to the United Kingdom, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)," the news release added.

Meanwhile, Kinahan's recent arrest was in accordance with the bilateral agreement on extradition between Ireland and the UAE, said the Garda.

Although they didn't name Kinahan, Dubai police shared they had "arrested an Irish fugitive for his alleged role in an organized criminal ​group involved in international crimes in his ​home country."

Additionally, on Friday, Ireland’s national police force, the Garda Síochána, announced that a man in his 40s was arrested under a warrant issued by the Irish courts.

"An Garda Síochána has been steadfast in our determination that we would pursue those allegedly involved in serious Organized Criminal activity, wherever they go. Today’s arrest is another extremely important demonstration of the need for international law enforcement co-operation in tackling transnational organized crime," the police said in a statement.