More and more loads of cocaine are finding their way into Europe, via the Irish coast. The country can do little about it, because it only has one patrol boat to monitor the coastline. The Kinahan Cartel also originates from the country.
Image: The Kinahan cartel from Ireland largely dominates the international drug market.
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At the end of September, Irish commandos seized 2.2 tons of coke from a cargo ship that was trying to flee Irish waters. This summer, hikers found bales of cocaine weighing 60 kilos on the beaches of Donegal. They had probably fallen overboard from a ship with a smuggling cargo.
Explosive growth
According to Irish police chief Justin Kelly, it is ‘inevitable’ that increasing amounts of drugs will find their way to the European market via Ireland. According to conservative estimates, more than 10 billion euros worth of cocaine is traded in the EU every year. Due to the explosive increase in consumption, the European Union has become the most attractive market for the cartels. The NOS writes this on its website.
Cartel
The NOS mentions the Irish Kinahan cartel as an important factor in this. This crime family started as a gang of local drug dealers on the streets of Dublin and has grown into one of the largest criminal organizations in the world with an estimated assets of one billion euros. “The Kinahans earn a large part of their money with cocaine and they have close ties with the South American cartels,” NOS said.
Capricious
What does not help in the approach is the fact that Ireland only has one patrol boat to tackle the smugglers. The rugged coastline also makes it easier for smugglers to land drugs, despite the fact that Ireland is not exactly on a European logistics route.
The Kinahans are associated with the drug network of the Bosnian Dutchman Edin G., who is suspected of large-scale drug trafficking.
Daniel Kinahan was almost confused with Ridouan Taghi by the Dutch police in 2019, during an observation in Dubai.
