Two men ‘duped' into money laundering for ‘Dublin' crime gang after Sligo company duped out of €39,000
Sligo Champion
Today at 23:00
TWO men who were 'duped' into money laundering for a criminal organisation appeared before Judge Mary O'Malley Costello on Friday.
The men, who did not know one another until their appearances in court, pleaded guiltyto various charges at the circuit court in Sligo on March 18 2025 and the matter was adjourned for sentencing.
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Sunday World
6 days ago
- Sunday World
Fugitive narco ex-Olympian ‘linked to Kinahans' has plastic surgery to evade cops
The FBI in Los Angeles believes Ryan Wedding, who has a $10 million US bounty on his head, has changed his appearance The FBI's Wanted poster for Wedding in Spanish Wedding as an athlete and (right) on the run A wanted Olympic athlete-turned-narco trafficker 'with links to the Kinahans' is suspected of having plastic surgery in Mexico in a bid to evade capture. It has been reported that the FBI in Los Angeles believes Ryan Wedding, who has a $10 million US bounty on his head, has spent his time on the run changing his appearance. A major manhunt is underway for the former Olympian snowboarder, who may have gone under the knife to hide his identity. "Investigators believe Wedding may have undergone plastic surgery, particularly since he has financial means," Laura Eimiller, the spokeswoman for the LA FBI field office, told Los Angeles Magazine. "It's not uncommon for high-profile fugitives." The bureau added Wedding, who is also connected with the deadly El Chapo cartel, to its 10 Most Wanted list in March while also making public the US State Department's staggering award offer. Wedding as an athlete and (right) on the run News in 90 Seconds - August 14th It was made just days after one of Wedding's right-hand men was linked to the Kinahan Cartel in documents filed by US attorneys in a Canadian court. Like Wedding, the US government are also offering a reward for the arrest of the Kinahans – with $5m bounty available for information on Christy snr and his two sons Daniel and Christy jnr. Ex-Canadian snowboarder Wedding (43) whose aliases include 'El Jefe" and "the Giant," is accused of running a violent international cocaine trafficking ring that moved 60 tons of cocaine a year from Colombia through Mexico and California to Canada. Federal prosecutors in California's Central District have called his murderous empire one of the 'most sophisticated drug trafficking networks in North America." Before turning to crime, Wedding was a well-known figure in winter sports and had competed in the Parallel Giant Slalom in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics where had finished in 24th place. The FBI's Wanted poster for Wedding in Spanish The FBI is focusing its worldwide manhunt for Wedding in Mexico where it released new 'Most Wanted' posters in Spanish last week. In October 2024, Andrew Clark, a top lieutenant in the massive drug operation and Wedding's reputed right-hand man, was captured near Mexico City a dramatic armed takedown by the Mexican military and Interpol. Clark was extradited to Los Angeles earlier this year and remains in custody at Metropolitan Detention Center. According to Los Angeles Magazine, investigators fear Wedding could kill witnesses while he remains on the loose. 'Prosecutors told a federal judge how Wedding is tied to some of the world's most dangerous co-conspirators, including Hezbollah, ex-KGB agents, Hells Angeles and vicious killers tied to Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, who was found guilty in the US on charges related to his own murderous network,' Los Angles Magazine reports. The capture of Wedding's right-hand man Andrew Clark The government was asking the judge for a protective order in the case to protect its witnesses, warning that anyone caught up in "Operation Giant Slalom" who agrees to cut a deal could be in danger. Assistant Director of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office Akil Davis said Wedding was a 'very dangerous man.' 'Wedding went from shredding powder on the slopes at the Olympics to distributing powder cocaine on the streets of U.S. cities and in his native Canada,'. 'The alleged murders of his competitors make Wedding a very dangerous man." Wedding has been on the run since he was charged with US officials along with 15 of his key associates last June. During previous bail hearing for one of his alleged gang members, Gurpreet Singh, the Kinahan Cartel were named in a document from federal prosecutors in Los Angeles and filed as evidence in Superior Court in Toronto. US officials told the court that Singh has "extensive organized crime connections within Dubai, including relationships with members of the Kinahan gang, which is a well-known, violent organized crime group operating throughout the world." In the document, assistant US attorneys Maria Jhai and Lyndsi Allsop also claimed Wedding continues to be involved in cocaine smuggling while on the run. "Investigators are aware that Wedding continues to traffic drugs while in hiding. "Wedding should not be granted access to an additional loyalist through the release of Singh on bail." Wedding Last year, shockwaves were sent through the sports world after a warrant was issued for Canadian snowboarder Wedding (43) for allegedly smuggling tons of cocaine into the US through Mexico. Wedding's fall from grace has been big news in the US with extensive profiles on his life of crime being carried in all major newspapers and TV stations. Just like the Kinahans, Wedding has links to some of the world's most infamous drugs cartels and terrorist organisations. They include ex-Russian KGB agents, Hezbollah and the Sinaloa Cartel. A wanted poster for the Kinahans Wedding is said to have had connections to elite Iranian money launderers in Vancouver who have ties to Columbian cartels. Last June, a US grand jury indictment charged Wedding with numerous felonies related to cocaine smuggling. Matthew Allen, special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration's Los Angeles division, claimed Wedding's gang were responsible for a wave of crimes. 'They have triggered an avalanche of violent crimes, including brutal murders. 'Wedding, the Olympian snowboarder, went from navigating slopes to contouring a life of incessant crimes.' US officials also directly tied Wedding and his second-in-command, Andrew Clark, to a number of gangland hits. 'Wedding and Clark allegedly directed the November 20, 2023, murders of two members of a family in Ontario, Canada, in retaliation for a stolen drug shipment,' the U.S. Attorney's Office has claimed. Another person was killed in May over an unpaid debt, on Wedding and Clark's orders, it is claimed. The trial for Wedding's associates is currently scheduled to begin in a Little Tokyo courtroom in February 2026, according to a court docket.
Irish Daily Mirror
12-08-2025
- Irish Daily Mirror
Gardai expect major decision on charging Kinahan to come soon
Gardai are hopeful of bringing charges against the Kinahan cartel leaders - almost two years on from asking the DPP to do so. In particular, officers believe they will soon be able to level a charge against mob boss Daniel Kinahan, who is still living in the United Arab Emirates - where Ireland now has a formal extradition process - as a final decision from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is expected. Gardai are understood to want to charge Kinahan over the murder of Eddie Hutch, a brother of Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch - but they also want to hit him, his brother Christy Jr, and his father Christy Sr with charges relating to running a E1 billion international criminal organisation. A massive file was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in August 2023, recommending charges for all three leaders of the Kinahan cartel - and sources say the clock is now ticking on that decision. Officers are understood to be optimistic that they will finally soon be able to charge, and ultimately extradite the Kinahans back to this country to face justice. However An Garda Siochana are not officially saying anything about the matter. When asked by this paper if they have received a decision from the DPP, gardai said: 'An Garda Síochána does not comment on correspondence with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.' Garda Commissioner Drew Harris did however comment on the matter two years ago - saying a 'very comprehensive and wide-ranging investigation into numerous serious offences committed here in Ireland and that file has been submitted to the DPP.' And we would hope to see leadership figures within the Kinahan organised crime group brought to justice here in Ireland,' he said at the time. The decision has still not been announced as Mr Harris sees out his final days at the head of the force - before Deputy Commissioner Justin Kelly takes the top job next month. Sources previously told this paper that officers also wanted to charge Daniel Kinahan over a foiled plot six years ago to murder Hutch ally James 'Mago' Gately. Gardai from the Drugs and organised Crime Bureau became aware that Estonian hitman Imre Arakas (64) was sent by the cartel to Dublin in April 2017 as part of a plot to murder Gately in Belfast. 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 Armed detectives stormed the house in west Dublin where Arakas was holed up and arrested him before he could head north to carry out the murder bid. A DOCB detective seized an encrypted phone from Arakas that had a message on its display saying 'Kill Mago Gately.' The phone's security system kicked in seconds after the detective grabbed the handset from Arakas and the message auto-deleted – but not before the officer took a photo of the screen with his own device. Sources say officers later established that the phone that sent the murder message was a handset controlled by Kinahan – and that is a key piece of the evidence against the mob boss. Christy Kinahan "Dapper Don" Gardai are hopeful that the new extradition agreement with the UAE will help to ensure that the Kinahans are brought back here to face justice. It comes as cartel mobster Sean McGovern was successfully flown back here in May and is now facing a Special Criminal Court trial for the alleged murder of Noel 'Duck Egg' Kirwan. The bloody Kinahan Hutch feud saw 18 men shot dead and began when Daniel Kinahan ordered the murder of Gary Hutch in Spain in 2015 - and when the cartel attempted to murder Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch in Lanzarote that Christmas. It significantly escalated when the Hutch gang struck back in February 2016 - shooting dead Kinahan associate David Byrne in Dublin's Regency Hotel - in a hit that was primarily targeting Daniel Kinahan. The feud ultimately claimed the lives of The Monk's brother Eddie, their nephews Gareth and Derek Coakley Hutch - and saw multiple attempts by the cartel to kill his nephews Jonathan Patrick and his brother Patsy. Gerry Hutch Gerry Hutch himself was accused of the murder of David Byrne but walked free after three Judges of the Special Criminal Court found him not guilty - citing a lack of evidence that he committed the crime at all. The feud also saw innocent dad of two Mr Kirwan shot dead after he had been merely pictured with 'The Monk' at Eddie Hutch's funeral, as well as the veteran gangster's friend Noel 'Kingsize' Duggan. Innocent Dublin city council worker Trevor O'Neill was another victim - killed in a horrific case of mistaken identity by a gunman targeting Jonathan Hutch on the island of Majorca in August 2016. Another innocent man - homeless Dubliner Martin O'Rourke, was also shot dead in the capital in April 2016 - after a gunman was targeting a Hutch associate in the area. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Independent
23-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Two men ‘duped' into money laundering for ‘Dublin' crime gang after Sligo company duped out of €39,000
Company was defrauded out of €39,000 with one of the accused told if he didn't co-operate, then three 'Kinahans' would visit his mum Sligo Champion Today at 23:00 TWO men who were 'duped' into money laundering for a criminal organisation appeared before Judge Mary O'Malley Costello on Friday. The men, who did not know one another until their appearances in court, pleaded guiltyto various charges at the circuit court in Sligo on March 18 2025 and the matter was adjourned for sentencing.
