Latest news with #Cab
Sunday World
4 days ago
- Business
- Sunday World
House tied to Kinahan-linked cartel growhouse operation sells for €51k
The remote Co Leitrim house was bought by Clondalkin taxi driver Niall Smith, who gardaí said operated grow houses all over the country for ten years. A property linked to a cannabis growing operation run by the Byrne Gang has been sold off at auction after being seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau. The remote Co Leitrim house, in a run-down state, was one of two bought in the county to be converted into a cannabis farm, according to Cab evidence. Four bidders battled it out for the bargain property which had a reserve price of €25,000 but sold for €51,000 last week. Clondalkin taxi driver Niall Smith, who gardaí said operated grow houses all over the country for ten years, had bought the house and sheds. Niall Smith They estimated he had spent €86,000 on renovating the property at Toomans earmarked by the Kinahan Cartel linked gang to grow cannabis. 'The remoteness of this location and the materials found when the property was searched support this conclusion,' it was stated in the High Court. The gang had planned to use the properties after gardaí discovered their grow-house in Wexford. Another house at Drumany was bought in 2011 for €15,000 by Smith but Cab estimated that €422,355 was spent on building a house on the site. That house, which had been refurbished to a high-standard, sold for €206,000 at auction in April. Two other houses seized by Cab were also auctioned off last week, one of which belonged to convicted armed robber Stefan Saunders. His five-bedroom house in Hazelbury Park in Clonee, was sold for €573,000, topping previous prices for houses in the estate, according to the Price Property Register. The home in Leitrim Saunders was one of the country's most prolific and dangerous armed robbers and was jailed for seven and a half years for an attempted ATM robbery in 2016. It was previously heard in the High Court that the couple bought the house in a spending spree after the €2.5m Brinks Allied security van robbery in Artane, Dublin, in 2005. Cab took possession of the property in Clonee in January after the couple exhausted all their legal appeals against the High Court ruling. Stefan Saunders claimed he worked as a plasterer while Tammy claimed she earned her income from an interior decorating business they owned. Cab also sold a house in Portlaoise, Co Laois last week that it had seized from Mary Cash who they alleged had acted as a getaway driver for a burglary gang. News in 90 June 4th The semi-detached four-bedroom bungalow with a large back garden at Harpur's Lane in Portlaoise sold for €91,000. Bought for €100,000 without a mortgage it was declared proceeds of crime in 2023 despite Ms Cash's claim she had made money in Australia working as an escort and a cleaner. During the case it was heard that new floors and a front door were installed along with a brand-new bathroom despite the couple's modest means. Cash is the wife of Andrew Cash, a member of a notorious burglary gang which carried out robberies all over the country along with her brother Henry Kiely, it was heard in the High Court. It emerged during the case there was a secret compartment in a bedroom where officers found £6,000 hidden in two socks during searches. In one search in 2020, images of Mary Cash leading 'a lavish lifestyle' were found on her mobile phone, including one taken while shopping at the up-market London store Harrods. A gold Cartier Santos Galbee watch worth €2,000, a Chanel N'Quartz watch worth €900 and two diamond bracelets worth €4,200 were also seized.
Sunday World
24-05-2025
- Sunday World
Woman whose luxury goods were declared proceeds of crime agrees to pay CAB legal bill
Yan Yan Fan whose collection of designer goods and cash were declared the proceeds of crime last year is to pay €45,000 in fees. A WOMAN who complained a Criminal Assest Bureau case made her more famous than The Monk has agreed to pay the legal costs of the court action. Yan Yan Fan whose collection of designer goods and cash were declared the proceeds of crime last year is to pay €45,000 in fees. The High Court heard this week the Chinese national had agreed to settle her long-running battle with the bureau. Ms Fan had 96 items seized from her apartment by Cab after a raid in 2021 during an investigation into a cannabis grow-house operation. Cab sought to have luxury goods, along with €229,000, declared the proceeds of crime. While 19 of those items were returned to along with €89,000 frozen in bank account she had appealed the finding against her. Judge Alex Owens accepted Yan-Yan Fan and a co-respondent, Guang Ying Wang (49) were working with a grow-house operation. Yan-Yan Fan News in 90 Seconds - May 24th 2025 At a High Court hearing last October, it was heard that Cab is also appealing the part of the ruling in which the judge directed cash be returned to Ms Fan's parents in China. Ms Fan, who represented herself in the proceedings, had maintained she was a lover of fashion and denied her treasured possessions were purchased with criminal cash. At one hearing she also complained to the High Court that she has been made 'famous even more than Gerry Hutch' because of the coverage surrounding her case. She maintained her innocence and asked the judge if he could make an order against journalists. The CAB investigation started in 2021 when Wang was arrested on March 19 and questioned about his suspected involvement in a grow-house in Phibblestown, Co Dublin, in which cannabis worth €400,000 had been discovered.
Irish Times
14-05-2025
- Irish Times
Five-bedroom home of notorious armed robber put up for sale by Cab
The house of an armed robber has been offered for sale by the Criminal Assets Bureau (Cab) despite the robbery gang leader having fought the case to the Supreme Court. The five-bedroom property, in Clonee on the Dublin-Meath boundary, is now on the market with an asking price of €345,000. Its former owner, Stefan Saunders (47), was jailed in 2018 for 7½ years after gardaí foiled a cash-in-transit armed robbery in 2016. Along with other gang members, he tried to steal more than €2 million from a cash-in-transit van. Saunders was also convicted of possession of a semi-automatic pistol. The property seized from him is 255sq m and is described by Wilsons Auctions as having an 'open-plan livingroom, diningroom and sunroom, kitchen, five bedrooms, master with en suite and walk-in wardrobe and main bathroom'. Saunders spent some €120,000 on extending the house, which included expensive sanitary ware, furnishings, projector screens and a Jacuzzi. The double-fronted semidetached house was taken possession of four months ago by Cab, after a protracted legal process, including Saunders attempting to bring the case for hearing before the Supreme Court. The house will be sold in an online public auction in two weeks. READ MORE In its case against Saunders in the High Court, Cab's evidence was that the Dubliner was also involved in the €1.8 million Brinks Allied security van robbery in Artane, Dublin in 2005. He was forensically linked to a vehicle used in a 'tiger kidnapping' of a cash transit firm employee. In October 2022, the High Court found the five-bed house at Hazelbury Park, Clonee, Dublin 15, was acquired and renovated with the proceeds of crime. The court also ruled the mortgage on the property, where Saunders lived with his wife, Tammy, was paid with such funds until they fell into arrears in 2010. Mr Justice Alexander Owens also ruled that a rental property the couple sold, businesses and expensive cars were funded in the same way. A valuer noted the Hazelbury Park home, which was purchased in 2005 for €360,000 with a 90 per cent mortgage, was refurbished to the 'highest standard' in 2007. The couple denied the assets derived from the proceeds of crime and claimed the funds came from valid employment, gifts and savings. Ruling in the Cab's case brought under the 1996 Proceeds of Crime Act, the judge said he was satisfied he was a member of a 'gang of robbers' who funded a 'spending spree' on these assets by Saunders and his wife between 2005 and 2008. Saunders also had a second buy-to-rent property at Mayeston Lawn, Finglas. [ Robbery gang member fails to convince Supreme Court to hear appeal over order on home Opens in new window ] The court ruled the proceeds of crime was used to fund a number of businesses and to buy expensive cars, including a €98,000 BMW X5. The judge said 'money from unidentified sources' was used to provide working capital for the interior decoration business Tammy Saunders worked in, U Design of Berkeley Road, Dublin, which was established in June 2005. Money from unidentified sources was used to open and operate hair salons in Berkeley Road and in Meakstown, near Finglas, he said. Cash from unidentified sources was used to renovate a house owned by Saunders's mother-in-law and her partner in 2006. The source of €17,500 bail money which his mother-in-law put up in November 2006 for Stefan Saunders, who was before the courts on a drugs charge which was later dropped, was also unidentified.
Sunday World
25-04-2025
- Sunday World
Home bought for use as Kinahan cartel growhouse sells for half the price spent on it
The Kinahan-linked Byrne Gang had planned to use the house as Drumany in Co Leitrim after their operations in Wexford had attracted too much garda attention. A HOUSE bought to be used by a cannabis growhouse operation has been sold for less than half the price spent on it before it was seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau. The Kinahan-linked Byrne Gang had planned to use the house as Drumany in Co Leitrim after their operations in Wexford had attracted too much garda attention. Taxi driver Niall Smith believed by gardaí to have run the cannabis-growing set-up, bought two remote properties in the county. Niall Smith The property at Drumany was bought in 2011 for €15,000 but Cab estimated that €422,355 was spent on building a house on the site. It sold for €206,000 at auction today in which four bidders competed to buy the property and house which had been refurbished to a high standard. The reserve price of €125,000 was met early in the auction process. A second house at Toomans, Co Leitrim had also been bought to be converted into a grow house on which Smith spent €86,000, according to Cab evidence. The home in Leitrim That is now due to go for auction next month with a reserve price of €25,000. Cab said Smith was involved in the 'large-scale cultivation of cannabis' on the direction 'of a faction the current Kinahan Organised Crime Group namely FreDdy Thompson and Liam' and was being monitored by lower level members. Garda intelligence indicated more grow houses were operating or being set up in Offaly, Westmeath, Longford, Roscommon and Leitrim, according to Cab. Inside the house The two properties were at the centre of Cab's case against Smith to have them declared the proceeds of crime. Smith, who initially opposed the Cab case, had said he is a taxi driver who also does boat repairs and denied any involvement in crime and that his money came from undeclared earnings. He said he was living off income from renting out a room in his Clondalkin home and was able to get by on €200 a week. The Sunday World previously revealed how Smith had been exposed as the Byrne gang's cannabis grower in Ireland after being forced to hand over property to Cab. Originally from Crumlin, south Dublin, is said by Cab to have operated grow-houses throughout the country for more than ten years. Smith was suspected of using the cover of his taxi business to transport the cannabis from remote rural areas back up to the Crumlin area for sale. A sophisticated grow house at Courtown, Co Wexford, was discovered in 2013 where Smith was present at the time. The same year, 140 plants were found at an industrial unit in Swords along with Smith's fingerprint, but no charges were brought. One officer who investigated the Crumlin native described him in an affidavit as 'very shrewd in his criminal enterprise'. He used as few people as possible in the operation 'with a view to reducing his exposure to law enforcement and remaining undetected', 'These grow-houses appear to be large in scale and professionally and efficiently run.'
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
The Toyota Tacoma is better than ever — but may have lost what made it special
The Toyota Tacoma has been America's best-selling small truck for the past 20 years. I was impressed by the Tacoma's powerful hybrid engine, solid driving dynamics, and updated tech. I was less impressed by the Tacoma's high price and tight rear seats. For the past twenty years, the Toyota Tacoma has been the best-selling small pickup truck in the US, outselling rivals like the Nissan Frontier and Ford Ranger. The current fourth generation debuted in 2024 with more power and an almost overwhelming amount of new tech. The Mexican-made pickup is also the first Tacoma to be offered with a four-cylinder hybrid powertrain instead of the traditional V6. It's a much-welcome upgrade, but I fear it risks losing what made the truck so special: no-nonsense reliability at a relatively low price. I recently spent a week driving a 2025 Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro Double Cab 4×4. The base two-seat Tacoma SR Xtra Cab 4X2 starts at $31,590, while my range-topping Tacoma TRD Pro Double Cab 4X4 test truck starts at $63,900. Shipping fees and a few optional extras pushed the as-tested price to $68,093. The Tacoma lineup ranges from the humble work truck to the premium Limited trim. As a result, Toyota offers the Tacoma with a variety of front grilles and facias. My favorite is the test truck's heritage grille, which evokes the look of the brand's iconic pickups from the late 1980s and early 1990s. The Tacoma is one of the most configurable trucks in the segment. It has two cab types: a two-passenger XtraCab and a five-passenger Double Cab. It's also available with both a five-foot and a six-foot bed. Most of its rivals, with the exception of the Nissan Frontier, are available only with a five-passenger crew cab and a five-foot bed. The TRD Pro trim, inspired by Toyota's off-road racing trucks, is designed for high-speed runs across the deserts of Baja California. That means it comes with a ton of special off-road goodies like Fox adjustable shocks, a performance air intake, and massive 33-inch Goodyear all-terrain tires with 18-inch black alloy wheels. There are also beefed-up aluminum skid plates and underbody protection for the transfer case and fuel tank. The coolest feature found exclusively on the TRD Pro is the IsoDynamic front seats. The seats feature a system of air-over-oil shock absorbers that absorb the impact of rough terrain on the occupants. A special air pump adjusts the firmness of the shocks. All Tacomas are powered by versions of Toyota's T24A-FTS turbocharged four-cylinder engine. My test truck was powered by a 2.4-liter, turbocharged inline-four-cylinder engine paired with a hybrid system consisting of a 48-horsepower electric drive motor and a small 1.87 kWh Nickel Metal Hydride battery pack. Together, they produce a robust 326 total horsepower and a whopping 465 lb-ft of torque. A non-hybrid version of the same engine is available with 228 horsepower, 270 horsepower (manual transmission), and 278 horsepower. My test truck boasted fuel economy ratings of 22 mpg city, 24 mpg highway, and 23 mpg combined, which aren't spectacular for a hybrid but solid for a high-performance truck of this size. It's the Toyota Hybrid that doesn't drive like a hybrid. For all its excellence, the old Toyota Tacoma was a chore to drive. Its V6 lacked grunt, and the driving position was uncomfortable. This time around, Toyota has fixed both. Power from the turbo four is strong and immediate, with the electric drive motor contributing an extra kick of torque. Despite being a Toyota hybrid, the Tacoma retains its torque converter and conventional eight-speed automatic transmission. Thus, it drives nothing like a Prius or a Camry, which depends on an e-CVT to drive the wheels. Instead, it feels more like a regular pickup with an aggressive auto start-stop feature. In fact, I actually forgot I was driving a hybrid at one point and went hunting for the button to shut off the start-stop. The engine also makes a surprisingly throaty rumble and is one of the better-sounding four-cylinder engines on the market. The Tacoma's cabin is far more stylish and feature-laden than before, but still as intuitively designed. Traditional Tacoma interiors are pretty spartan. This one does a full 180. It's got every creature comfort you could ever want in a truck and a few you didn't even know you needed, like seats with shock absorbers and a detachable JBL Bluetooth speaker. What hasn't changed is that the cabin remains logically designed and easy to use. This tech content is impressive and is a vast improvement over the previous generation. The centerpiece of Tacoma's tech package is its massive optional 14-inch touchscreen (base models get an 8-inch unit) running Toyota's latest infotainment system, which is among the easiest to use on the market. The front seats take out a big chunk of the rear legroom. As a result, the back seats in my test truck would be uncomfortable for most adults. This is especially the case if the front seat occupants are taller than 6'0. Open up the power tailgate, and you'll find a versatile bed with plenty of LED lighting and adjustable tie-down points. There are also USB, 12V, and AC power sockets, and some models even have a built-in air compressor. The Tacoma can tow up to 6,500 lbs. That trails the Chevrolet Colorado's 7,700 lb and Nissan Frontier's 7,150 lb rating. My Verdict: The new Toyota Tacoma is better in every way, but it may have lost some of the essence that made it great. The 2025 Tacoma is a great truck. Toyota fixed pretty much everything that held it back from my good graces with more power, improved driving dynamics, and updated tech. But the Tacoma's success has always been built on delivering no-nonsense dependability at a reasonable price. It's the very reason my father purchased one a few years ago. Power, tech, and luxury have never been its calling card. In fact, they've caused the price tag to skyrocket to levels that may drive loyalists toward its rivals. As much as I like the fancy new Tacoma, I can't help but feel that they are diluting the secret sauce that made it so beloved. Read the original article on Business Insider
