Michael McGrath 'very anxious' to extend agreements on judicial cooperation
Ireland's European Commissioner Michael McGrath said he is 'very anxious' to extend agreements on judicial cooperation with the UAE and other countries.
In a precedent setting case, Daniel Kinahan's right hand man Sean McGovern was flown back from the UAE to Ireland last month. He was then charged with murder and four gangland offences in a sitting at the Special Criminal Court.
The thug was the first to be extradited from the country that until recently was seen as a safe haven for Irish criminals.
Mr McGrath, who is EU Commissioner for Justice, said he is currently working to extend a relationship with the UAE.
Asked about the possible extradition of Daniel Kinahan in Brussels earlier this week, Commissioner McGrath said: 'I can't get into individual cases but my responsibility as justice commissioner does extend to cooperation with third countries, countries outside the EU.
'We are very anxious and I'm personally determined to extend a network of agreements that we have on judicial cooperation with third countries.'
The Commissioner said in recent months there have been talks involving his team and the UAE, and in April he visited the country.
He believes this has created 'a better relationship in progress on these issues'.
Mr McGrath added: 'My focus as justice commissioner is extending the network of agreements that we can develop with third countries to improve judicial operations.
'The UAE would be on the list of countries that I would like to improve the level of cooperation with. That compliments the work that member states are doing with the successful completion of the extradition agreement with Ireland and the UAE.'
The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week
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