28-05-2025
Breaking Senior Kinahan gang figure being extradited back to Ireland
One of the most senior figures in the Kinahan Organised Crime Group, who is wanted here to face charges of murder and involvement with a criminal gang, is being extradited from the United Arab Emirates.
Sean McGovern, who was named in the Special Criminal Court as one of the leaders of the Kinahan Organised Crime Group, is currently on a Defence Forces military aircraft being flown back to Ireland.
The 39-year-old who gardaí say is Daniel Kinahan's right hand man, is wanted for the murder of Noel Kirwan, an innocent man who was shot dead as part of the Hutch-Kinahan feud in December 2016.
Mr McGovern is the first person to be extradited from the United Arab Emirates to Ireland.
He has been in custody for over seven months and is being escorted back to Ireland by gardaí who are expected to formally arrest him when his plane lands here, and charge him before the Special Criminal Court.
A European arrest warrant has already been issued by the High Court.
The Irish Air Corps airbus C295 plane which is bringing him back left Casement Aerodrome on Monday morning.
It stopped in Marseilles in France and Larnaca in Cyprus before arriving in Dubai on Tuesday afternoon.
It flew out of the Al Maktoum International Airport at around 8pm Irish time tonight with Mr McGovern on board, escorted by gardaí and military personnel.
The plane is expected to land at Casement Aerodrome tomorrow evening.
Mr McGovern was arrested by Dubai Police on 10 October 2024 on foot of an Interpol red notice, a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.
He has been contesting his extradition since, but the fact that he has been put on an Irish military plane and is being flown back to Ireland tonight is evidence that he has lost that fight and that extradition proceedings in the UAE have now concluded.
Interpol described Mr McGovern as "one of Ireland's most wanted fugitives" and said the red notice was published to support the ongoing collaboration between the Irish and UAE authorities.
