The Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) and armed gardaí have raided the "heavily fortified" headquarters of a motorcycle gang, leading to the seizure of ten motorbikes.
The gang is closely linked to the Kinahan and Byrne organised crime groups and provided an escort for the funeral of Crumlin man David Byrne after he was shot dead in the Regency Hotel attack in 2016 during the Hutch-Kinahan feud.
Intelligence suggested members of the gang may have access to weapons leading the Garda and Cab to start a large scale operation involving the Emergency Response Unit, the Armed Support Unit, detectives from Crumlin and the Customs Dog Unit and a Garda helicopter,
The compound in Crumlin, which was described by the Garda as “heavily fortified” consists of several buildings surrounded by high metal fences. It has been the subject of Garda raids on several previous occasions.
Two men were arrested during Monday’s raid on suspicion of money laundering offences and are being detained at separate Garda Stations in Dublin.
Cab officers also seized ten motorcycles including BMW and Harley Davidson models, a BMW car, a Ford Ranger jeep, a VW Scirocco and €4,000 in cash.
“Today’s search operation targeted a criminal grouping aligned to a number of organised crime groups involved in drug trafficking and organised criminality nationally.
“Today marks a significant development in an ongoing money laundering and proceeds of crime investigation,” the Garda said in a statement.
The gang has been under investigation by Crumlin’s District Detective Unit for several years for suspected drug and money laundering offences.
A previous raid uncovered a large stash of weapons including dozens of knives, swords and imitation firearms. Previous Cab operations have resulted in the seizure of over €130,000.
The gang comprises a small number of core members and a wider circle of associates and it is believed to have links to international biker gangs involved in criminality.
Some of its members are suspected of issuing threats to kill former members. In January four members of the gang were arrested by the ERU during a dramatic operation on the Naas Road as they travelled back from Wexford.
The men were suspected of travelling to Wexford to threaten a former associate with a weapon. However, no gun was found during the arrest.
The gang is also suspected of carrying out acts of intimidation on behalf of the Byrne organised crime group over the years.
