Daniel Kinahan is a native of Ireland who now runs the family business started by his father from Dubai. What's particularly unusual is that the family business is otherwise known as the Kinahan Organized Crime Group, and the 40-something Kinahan is considered to be one of the most notorious cocaine kingpins in the world, writes Ed Caesar at the New Yorker. So much so that the US State Department has a standing $5 million reward on offer for information leading to his arrest. Despite that, Kinahan continues to live a lavish lifestyle in the United Arab Emirates capital from the plush Burj Al Arab hotel as he runs what authorities call the "Super Cartel." The organization allegedly ships tons of cocaine from South America to European ports via ferry.
The story tracks Kinahan's rise in crime as he followed in the footsteps of his father, Christy Kinahan Sr., who transitioned from petty fraud to major drug trafficking in the 1980s. As Irish law enforcement expanded its powers, the Kinahan family moved operations abroad, first to Amsterdam and then Spain, eventually settling in Dubai. There, they developed a sophisticated money laundering operation to conceal drug profits, and cultivated ties with international criminal groups. It's these "geopolitical pariahs" who apparently help Kinahan remain at large. Dubai's historically lax attitude toward foreign criminals and money also helps. Read the full story, which notes that current US drug priorities—"notably fentanyl and Latin American cartels"—suggest he won't feel American pressure anytime soon. Still, it appears that a "net is closing in around the gang."
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
