Latest news with #Kinahan
Irish Daily Mirror
21 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Book of evidence served on alleged Kinahan cartel figure Sean McGovern
A book of evidence has been served on alleged Kinahan cartel figure Sean McGovern relating to the murder of Noel 'Duck Egg' Kirwan. McGovern, 39, of Kildare Road, Crumlin, Dublin 12, who was extradited from Dubai earlier this year, appeared before the three-judge Special Criminal Court on Monday. He is charged with the murder of Mr Kirwan on December 22, 2016 at St Ronan's Drive, Clondalkin in Dublin. Mr McGovern is also charged with directing the activities of a criminal organisation in connection with the same murder between October 20, 2016 and December 22, 2016. He is further charged with directing the activities of a criminal organisation in connection with the surveillance of James Gately in preparation for the commission of an indictable offence between October 17, 2015 and April 6, 2017. He is also charged with contributing to or participating in activity intending or being reckless as to whether such activity would facilitate a criminal organisation in the murder of Mr Kirwan. He faces a similar charge of facilitating a criminal organisation in a conspiracy to murder Mr Gately. The book of evidence relating to the Kirwan murder was served on the accused on Monday morning, defence counsel Keith Spencer said. A second book of evidence will be served in October via electronic means. Counsel reiterated the defence's plan to contest the legality of McGovern's extradition from Dubai in May of last year. Counsel noted that this legal challenge could be brought before the Special Criminal Court or another appropriate court. McGovern was remanded back in custody to Portlaoise Prison to appear before the court again in October. Sign up to the Irish Mirror's Courts and Crime newsletter here and get breaking crime updates and news from the courts direct to your inbox. 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
Irish Post
3 days ago
- Irish Post
Head of Kinahan gang in Britain ordered to pay £1.1m or face extra 12-year sentence
THE HEAD of the Kinahan gang in Britain has been ordered to pay more than £1m or face an extra 12 years in prison. Irishman Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh, 57, was jailed for 21 years in March 2022 for orchestrating the importation of multi-million-pound drug shipments with a street value of around £30m. Two years later, he was handed an additional sentence after admitting firearms offences. Kavanagh has now been ordered to stump up more than £1.1m following a Proceeds of Crime Act investigation led by the National Crime Agency (NCA). Another high-ranking member of the gang, 43-year-old Gary Vickery, has been ordered to pay back £109,312.90 within three months or face another two years in prison. "We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to target, disrupt and dismantle organised crime groups, deprive them of their assets and ensure they face justice," said Kay Mellor, Head of Operations HQ at the NCA. Fortified mansion Vickery was arrested in October 2017 after NCA officers seized 15kg of cocaine and more than 220kg of cannabis found inside a six-tonne industrial tarmac removal machine in Dover. Subsequent investigations showed Kavanagh was heading up the criminal enterprise, and he was arrested at Birmingham airport as he returned from holiday in January 2019. Following his sentencing, NCA investigators began looking into the gang's finances and assets for seizure under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Officers estimated that Kavanagh's criminal profits were in the region £12.2m, but recoverable assets amounted to £1,123,096.84. This included his 50 per cent share of his fortified family mansion in Tamworth, Staffordshire, money from the sale of various other properties in Britain and a villa in Spain, and approximately £150,000 of high-end bags, clothes and accessories which were discovered when his house was searched following his initial arrest in 2019. Vickery, originally from Dublin, was also subject to the Proceeds of Crime Act hearing. At previous hearings, orders were made to forfeit an Audemars Piguet watch worth £75,000, as well as just over €100,000 that was seized from a hotel room when Vickery was arrested. In October 2024, Kavanagh admitted additional firearms offences and perverting the course of justice after NCA officers uncovered a plan that Kavanagh hoped would reduce his prison sentence. Kavanagh directed associates Shaun Kent and Liam Byrne to purchase firearms and ammunition and bury them so he could reveal their whereabouts to NCA investigators. All three were jailed for a total of 17 years, with Kavanagh's six years to be served on top of his 21-year sentence. 'Untouchable' "Thomas Kavanagh was the head of the UK's arm of the Kinahan organised crime group, responsible for the importation and distribution of drugs and firearms, making millions of pounds in the process," added Ms Mellor. "He and his gang believed they were untouchable, but that proved to be their downfall. "Kavanagh and Vickery will be behind bars for many years to come and now have to pay back more than £1m to the state." See More: Kinahan Organised Crime Group, Thomas Kavanagh
The Independent
4 days ago
- The Independent
Notorious crime boss ordered to pay back £1 million or face extra 12 years in jail
A UK boss of a notorious crime group has been ordered to pay back more than £1 million or face more jail time, prosecutors have said. Thomas Kavanagh, 57, of Mile Oak in Tamworth, Staffordshire, will have three months to pay the sum or face another 12 years in prison, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said on Friday. Prosecutors estimate the Kinahan organised criminal group, of which Kavanagh was the head, smuggled drugs from Europe with a street value of around £30 million by hiding the products inside machinery. Kavanagh was sentenced in March 2022 to 21 years in prison after pleading guilty to drugs and money laundering offences. A judge sitting at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday estimated that Kavanagh and his associate Gary Vickery, 42, of Boundary Road in Solihull, West Midlands, gained £12,235,047 and £10,966,619 respectively from their criminal lifestyle, the CPS said. The judge ordered Kavanagh to pay £1,123,096 based on his current assets, which include 'his 50% share of his fortified family mansion in Tamworth, money from the sale of various other properties in the UK and a villa in Spain, and approximately £150,000 of high-end bags, clothes and accessories which were discovered when Kavanagh's house was searched following his initial arrest in 2019', a spokesperson for the NCA added. Vickery was ordered to pay a sum of £109,312 within three months, or face another two years in prison, prosecutors said. At previous court hearings, orders were made to forfeit an Audemars Piguet watch worth £75,000, as well as just over 100,000 euros that was seized from a hotel room when Vickery was arrested, the NCA added. Kay Mellor, head of Operations HQ at the NCA, said: 'Thomas Kavanagh was the head of the UK's arm of the Kinahan organised crime group, responsible for the importation and distribution of drugs and firearms, making millions of pounds in the process. 'He and his gang believed they were untouchable, but that proved to be their downfall. 'Kavanagh and Vickery will be behind bars for many years to come and now have to pay back more than £1 million to the state.' Adrian Foster, chief Crown prosecutor, said: 'Thomas Kavanagh and Gary Vickery are dangerous criminals in the organised gang world, importing millions of pounds worth of dangerous drugs on an industrial scale to the UK. 'This successful £1 million Confiscation Order demonstrates the prosecution team's commitment to work across borders to strip organised criminals of their illegal gains. 'We continue to pursue the proceeds of crime robustly and will return them back to court to serve an additional sentence of imprisonment if they fail to pay their orders.' In October 2024, Kavanagh was sentenced to another six years in jail after he and associates plotted to lead NCA officers to a buried stash of 11 weapons in a bid to secure himself a lighter prison sentence for his multimillion-pound drug enterprise. Running the conspiracy from prison, Kavanagh enlisted the help of his brother-in-law, 44-year-old Liam Byrne, and associate Shaun Kent, 38, in the plan to deceive the NCA. Byrne – who fled to Majorca after the events – was jailed for five years while Kent was handed a six-year prison sentence for their roles in the plot.
Irish Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh ordered to pay €1.7m or spend 12 more years behind bars
Senior Kinahan cartel boss Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh has been ordered to pay the British State over €1.7 million following a proceeds-of-crime investigation - or spend 12 more years behind bars. Gangster Kavanagh, 57, who headed UK operations for the Kinahan cartel, has been given three months to pay the sum or face another 12 years in prison, the National Crime Agency in the UK announced on Friday. 'Bomber' Kavanagh, from Drimnagh in Dublin, was jailed for 21 years in the UK in March 2022 for orchestrating the importation of multi-million-pound drug shipments worth around €34 million (£30 million) at UK street value. He also admitted being involved in the illegal trafficking of firearms and money-laundering. Another high-ranking Kinahan gang member, Gary Vickery, 43, was arrested in October 2017 after NCA officers seized 15 kilos of cocaine and more than 220 kilos of cannabis which was found inside a six-tonne industrial tarmac removal machine in Dover. Gary Vickery (37) The development was announced on Friday by the NCA, who described Kavanagh as "the head of the Kinahan Crime Group in the UK." Subsequent investigations showed Kavanagh was heading up the criminal enterprise, and he was arrested at Birmingham Airport as he returned from holiday in January 2019. Following his sentencing, the National Crime Agency investigators began looking into the gang's finances and assets for seizure under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Officers estimated that Kavanagh's criminal profits were in the region of €13.7m but recoverable assets amounted to €1.7m. This includes his 50 per cent share of his fortified family mansion in Tamworth, Staffordshire, money from the sale of various other properties in the UK and a villa in Spain, and approximately €171,000 of high-end bags, clothes and accessories which were discovered when Kavanagh's house was searched following his initial arrest in 2019. Vickery was also subject to the POCA hearing and has been ordered to pay back around €124,000 within three months or face another two years in prison. At previous hearings orders were made to forfeit an Audemars Piguet watch worth €85,000, as well as just over €100,000 that was seized from a hotel room when Vickery was arrested. In October 2024, Thomas Kavanagh admitted additional firearms offences and perverting the course of justice, after NCA officers uncovered an elaborate plan that Kavanagh hoped would significantly reduce his prison sentence. PICTURED: Thomas Kavanagh Arrest The Fall of Bomber Kavanagh on Virgin. Kavanagh directed his trusted associates Shaun Kent and Liam Byrne to purchase firearms and ammunition and bury them so he could reveal their whereabouts to NCA investigators. All three were jailed for a total of 17 years, with Kavanagh's six years to be served on top of his 21-year sentence. Liam Byrne (left) and Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh (right) Kay Mellor, Head of Operations HQ at the National Crime Agency, said: "Thomas Kavanagh was the head of the UK's arm of the Kinahan organised crime group, responsible for the importation and distribution of drugs and firearms, making millions of pounds in the process. "He and his gang believed they were untouchable, but that proved to be their downfall. Kavanagh and Vickery will be behind bars for many years to come and now have to pay back more than £1 million to the state. "We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to target, disrupt and dismantle organised crime groups, deprive them of their assets and ensure they face justice". Adrian Foster, Chief Crown Prosecutor, said: "Thomas Kavanagh and Gary Vickery are dangerous criminals in the organised gang world, importing millions of pounds worth of dangerous drugs on an industrial scale to the UK. "This successful £1 million Confiscation Order demonstrates the prosecution team's commitment to work across borders to strip organised criminals of their illegal gains. "We continue to pursue the proceeds of crime robustly and will return them back to court to serve an additional sentence of imprisonment if they fail to pay their orders. "In the last five years, over £478 million has been recovered from CPS obtained Confiscation Orders, ensuring that thousands of convicted criminals cannot benefit from their offending. £95 million of that amount has been returned to victims of crime, by way of compensation." Sign up to the Irish Mirror's Courts and Crime newsletter here and get breaking crime updates and news from the courts direct to your inbox.
Telegraph
4 days ago
- Telegraph
Kinahan crime boss ordered to pay back £1m
A judge sitting at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday estimated that Kavanagh and his associate, Gary Vickery, 42, of Solihull, West Midlands, gained £12,235,047 and £10,966,619 respectively from their criminal lifestyle, the CPS said. The judge ordered Kavanagh to pay £1,123,096 based on his current assets, which include 'his 50 per cent share of his fortified family mansion in Tamworth, money from the sale of various other properties in the UK and a villa in Spain, and approximately £150,000 of high-end bags, clothes and accessories which were discovered when Kavanagh's house was searched following his initial arrest in 2019', a spokesman for the NCA added. Vickery was ordered to pay a sum of £109,312 within three months, or face another two years in prison, prosecutors said. 'Millions of pounds in the process' At previous court hearings, orders were made to forfeit an Audemars Piguet watch worth £75,000, as well as more than 100,000 euros that were seized from a hotel room when Vickery was arrested, the NCA added. Kay Mellor, head of Operations HQ at the NCA, said: 'Thomas Kavanagh was the head of the UK's arm of the Kinahan organised crime group, responsible for the importation and distribution of drugs and firearms, making millions of pounds in the process. 'He and his gang believed they were untouchable, but that proved to be their downfall. 'Kavanagh and Vickery will be behind bars for many years to come and now have to pay back more than £1 million to the state.' 'Dangerous criminals' Adrian Foster, chief Crown prosecutor, said: 'Thomas Kavanagh and Gary Vickery are dangerous criminals in the organised gang world, importing millions of pounds worth of dangerous drugs on an industrial scale to the UK. 'This successful £1 million Confiscation Order demonstrates the prosecution team's commitment to work across borders to strip organised criminals of their illegal gains. 'We continue to pursue the proceeds of crime robustly and will return them back to court to serve an additional sentence of imprisonment if they fail to pay their orders.'
