‘Looking forward to getting home’, Daniel Kinahan claims as fugitive handcuffed on Govt jet & touchdown details revealed

DANIEL Kinahan tried to control the narrative before he is placed in handcuffs on a Government jet that landed in Dubai tonight — claiming: “I’m looking forward to getting home.” The 49-year-old, who has spent the last ten-nd-ahaf years avoiding his home in Ireland, will land at the military base at Baldonnel in south-west Dublin by tomorrow afternoon, ahead of his court appearance. Daniel Kinahan is set to land in Dublin tomorrow ahead of his court appearance Credit: SOCIAL MEDIA COLLECT He will travel on the Irish Air Corps’ Dassault Falcon 6X, which is primarily used by the Taoiseach Micheál Martin and other senior Government ministers Credit: Defence Forces Press Office Issue Unlike his last return, Kinahan has no outbound flight planned — instead a prison cell in Ireland’s most secure facility awaits him. The high-security operation is underway across the ground in the capital this weekend. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! We can reveal how the Criminal Courts of Justice building has been swept for bombs after staff there were instructed to take home their bags to avoid any security scares. We have also learned that snipers from the Gardai’s Emergency Response Unit have been deployed in the area as part of the operation. READ MORE IN DANIEL KINAHAN The Irish Air Corps’ Dassault Falcon 6X — primarily used by the Taoiseach Micheál Martin and other senior Government ministers — departed at 10.31am this morning and landed in Dubai at around 7pm tonight. Senior gardai, including members of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Extradition Unit, met with their counterparts in the UAE city ahead of Kinahan’s handover. Dubliner Kinahan was aware his extradition was imminent, speaking to podcaster James English over the phone on Thursday afternoon. In the short clip, released on social media today by English, Kinahan wallowed in self-pity. Most read in The Sun Kinahan spoke to podcaster James English over the phone on Thursday afternoon Credit: @jamesenglish0 Dubliner Kinahan was aware his extradition was imminent Credit: AFP via Getty Images He said: “I reckon that the security is gonna be crazy. “And I’m sitting here reflecting in a little phone box, s******e box, thinking of what happened, how I got here and all the stuff that’s happened in my life — the whole lot — just reflecting. “When you look at things, everything’s in God’s hands. And everything happens the way it’s supposed to happen. “I’ve just been sitting reflecting. And this place I’m after being in is absolute… really bad, s******e. So I’m looking forward to getting home. Like I said earlier to you before, it’s bittersweet.” Kinahan suggested for the clip to be released when it emerges the operation is underway, before then insinuating a false perception exists of him because of media coverage. He continued: “It’s crazy when I think of the likes of where I’ve come from, where I was born, everything that I’ve been through and then going back to Ireland now 25 years later. I’m still the same as I was. “Still the same friends from when I grew up, still the same people that I know and it’s gonna be nice to get back to understand it. “I was always proud to be Irish and I always wanted to do good things and big things. Kinahan last flew into Dublin on February 14, 2016 from Faro Kinahan will be checked into the A-block, where close friend Sean McGovern is serving a 24-year prison sentence Credit: Crispin Rodwell – The Sun Dublin “Obviously life didn’t go that way for me with all the stuff and all the media, what people think of me, and the perception they have of me. “But I’m still so proud to be from Ireland, so proud to be from the Oliver Bond flats, bred there, and the mentality, the humour, the food so I guess I’m gonna to have a lot of that when I come back. “So I’m looking forward to getting back home. Hopefully, they give you a chance to come over and do a proper interview when I’m down in Portlaoise, James — you’d be most welcome.” Upon his arrival, Kinahan will be escorted down the steps of the jet onto the tarmac at Baldonnel where a senior investigating officer will meet him and arrest him. Placed in an unmarked garda vehicle, it will move in a convoy with others manned by armed gardaí for the 18km trip to the Criminal Courts of Justice, where they will then enter through the secured back gate. The Emergency Response Unit is overseeing the security operation, but the Armed Support Unit is also expected to be posted outside court for a “visible policing presence”. Kinahan will be brought into the precincts of the court, where he will be met by the arresting officer once more and the charge read to him, at which point he will have the opportunity to reply. Minutes later, he will be walked into the Special Criminal Court, on the third floor of the building, which armed detectives will man. The short court hearing will see Kinahan stand and be asked to confirm his name, before the charge of directing a criminal organisation between 2015 and 2017 is read to him. He will then be remanded in custody to Portlaoise Prison — the only jail to which the three-judge court can send suspects. From there on, the Irish Prison Service will have primary responsibility for him and have a new addition in their fleet to drive him to his new home in the midlands — a bomb and bullet-proof van. The vehicle, recently purchased from up north and which has been designed to look like any other prison van on its exterior, will travel alongside more armed gardaí to Portlaoise. Kinahan will be checked into the A-block, where familiar face and close friend Sean McGovern is serving a 24-year prison sentence for his cartel role in the murder of an innocent granddad and attempts on a Hutch associate. Former Assistant Commissioner for Dublin Pat Leahy, whose investigators were involved in the probes into the murders of Eddie Hutch, Martin O’Rourke, Michael Barr and Gareth Hutch, has “no concerns” about Kinahan’s return to Ireland. Mr Leahy told us: “It wouldn’t be the first time a high- profile individual has been extradited back to Ireland — theGardaíi are highly trained to deal with this process. “All of the agencies involved in this operation work well together and that’s what matters. “Of course security will be tight, and there will be a sweep of the court before any appearance, but this is standard practice. “The Gardaí, the Defence Forces and the Irish Prison Service will also work closely on this matter.” Leahy added: “The investigation process which led to Daniel Kinahan’s arrest is now over. “All elements of the investigation have been dealt with and the Director of Public Prosecutions has concluded that there was sufficient evidence to charge him. “The most important people in this process should be the relatives of the loved ones who were left behind during this murderous feud.” The charge against Kinahan is a single all-encompassing one that covers a range of crimes — including orchestrating a series of murders and attempts on life. Investigators allege that he is the man behind the encrypted Pretty Good Privacy messages sent by ‘Cap’ and ‘Bon’ to associates, including McGovern, whom the court described as the on-the-ground lieutenant for the cartel. Kinahan last flew into Dublin on February 14, 2016 from Faro, to attend the funeral of his associate David Byrne, who the Hutch gang had shot dead ten days earlier at the Regency Hotel. He then left the country that evening and had never returned — until today.