Panicked Daniel Kinahan is scrambling to keep his hidden assets out of law enforcement’s reach, insiders have revealed.
The mob boss, his father Christy Snr and brother Christy Jnr have money stashed in countless businesses, property and other money laundering operations which have yet to be identified by investigators.
The gang is also rife with paranoia, with fears that senior associates could turn to save themselves and pass on key information that would lead to the trio in cuffs.
Read more: Kinahan cartel's alleged drug route through Europe's busiest ports exposed
When the US government, along with the Garda and the UK’s National Crime Agency, declared war on the cartel earlier this month they placed sanctions on three companies, two of which are based in Dubai.
Insiders have now revealed how 44-year-old Kinahan works with several people who appear to be legitimate businessmen but are running companies with the gang’s dirty money.
And he is now trying to keep them out of reach from investigators while under unprecedented pressure.
Sources also say that Kinahan has multiple associates holding money on his behalf.
And while the gang are under US sanctions and have had their assets in the UAE frozen, they still have access to millions elsewhere.
One explained: “You have this group that is worth over a billion euro, so they have that tied up in everything, businesses, machinery, property, everything.
“These businesses can look legitimate but they are either controlled by the Kinahans or controlled by people they have placed there.
“They are now trying to make sure that these businesses stay under the radar but that’s going to be very difficult in the long run when you’ve police across the world keeping tabs on you.”
The cartel is also reassessing who they trust as they fear who will turn on them as Daniel, Christy Snr, 65, and Christy Jnr, 41, have a $5m bounty on their heads.
Another insider said: “The paranoia is through the roof.”
Security specialist Sheelagh Brady has also told how the gang will have significant “financial capabilities” despite the actions of the past two weeks.
Brady, chief security analyst for SAR Consultancy, told the Irish Mirror: “With the seizure of assets, a group like the Kinahans will not put all their eggs in one basket – they’re likely to have it put away off shore, or into solid assets and businesses that have yet to come to the awareness of law enforcement.”
Brady believes that although the cartel is in freefall, it doesn’t rule them out of the drug trafficking business.
The former garda said: “I think what would happen from a drug trafficking point of view you will see a lot of these groups reassessing what the current environment is.
“And for a little bit of time we might see a little bit of inaction as they work out who the next movers and shakers could be. They’re like a big business. They do take time to actually see how the markets unfold to assess their future opportunities and risks.
“And like mergers and acquisitions in the business world, these happen in the drug world.
“So is there an opportunity for the Kinahans to work with trusted parties to put their business on hold until the off-chance the heat goes off them.
“This group has too many assets that are potentially not identified yet that they can not walk away from.”
Read more: Daniel Kinahan and relatives could be extradited back from Dubai
Read more: Mob boss Daniel Kinahan's drug trafficking empire imploding amid crackdown on business partners
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