A large-scale security operation has been put in place in Dublin ahead of the expected arrival of Daniel Kinahan at Casement Aerodrome later today.
The air corp’s Dassault Falcon 6X, callsign Irl290, took off at around 10.30am on Saturday. It arrived in the United Arab Emirates yesterday evening.
The large-scale security operation facilitating the extradition involves An Garda Síochána, the Defence Forces and the Irish Prison Service. Sources say the flight is expected to land in Dublin at around 5pm on Sunday evening.
Mr Kinahan, 49, was arrested in Dubai in April after An Garda Síochána sought his extradition under the bilateral extradition agreement signed between Ireland and the UAE in 2024.
The alleged leader of the Kinahan organised crime group has since lost his appeal against extradition and is now expected to be returned to Ireland to face a charge of directing the activities of an organised crime group.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the Government jet is due to land at Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, on Sunday afternoon.
On arrival, Mr Kinahan is expected to be transferred under heavy armed escort directly to a sitting of the Special Criminal Court at the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin.
Mr Kinahan has been living in Dubai for several years, including during the height of the Kinahan-Hutch feud, before his arrest earlier this year.
In 2016, an attempt was made on Daniel Kinahan’s life at a boxing weigh-in at the Regency Hotel in Dublin.
In 2022, US authorities issued a reward of up to $5m (€4.3m) for Kinahan’s arrest.
His extradition marks a significant development in the long-running Garda investigation into the Kinahan organised crime group and follows years of cooperation between Irish and Emirati authorities.