![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/SEC_288598185-3031.jpg\")
\n\t\tDaniel (left) and Christy (right) Kinahan were photographed at the fight (Pictures: DM)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tDaniel (left) and Christy (right) Kinahan were photographed at the fight (Pictures: DM)<\/p>\n
Two of the world\u2019s most wanted drug lords have been spotted at an MMA<\/a> fighting championship in Dubai<\/a>.<\/p>\n Daniel, the son of the Kinahan Cartel\u2019s head, has maintained a high-rolling lifestyle with global financial trails.<\/p>\n The empire\u2019s founder, Christy, was spotted alongside his son in Dubai last June, where the pair have lived since 2016.<\/p>\n The US<\/a> has put $5,000,000 bounties on their heads and sanctioned the cartel members, who are accused of smuggling deadly narcotics into the UK and Europe.<\/p>\n The charges don\u2019t seem to have phased the criminal father and son, who appear to be living a lavish lifestyle, even with the United Arab Emirates<\/a> insisting it has frozen their assets.<\/p>\n Newly released images show the pair sitting front seat at the 971 Fighting Championship in Dubai last year.<\/p>\n \t\t An investigation from the Sunday Times confirmed photos showed the cartel bosses, with one source saying: \u2018It\u2019s him, 100%.<\/p>\n \u2018He\u2019s put a little weight on around his face, but he\u2019s getting on now. He always looked after himself, but age is catching up with him.\u2019<\/p>\n The images appeared a decade after a couple began a new chapter in Ireland\u2019s gang feuds, when two men attempted to take out Kinahan cartel member Daniel.<\/a><\/p>\n The infamous attack on February 5,\u00a02016,\u00a0in full view of\u00a0members of the media present, would claim the life of\u00a0Kinahan cartel member\u00a0David Byrne,\u00a0<\/a>who was\u00a0shot six times with a high-velocity rifle.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n But Daniel, the intended target, managed to slip out of the conflict unscathed before fleeing to Dubai.<\/a><\/p>\n What is the Kinahan Cartel?<\/p>\n \t\t From the starting point of low-level crime<\/a> in their native Dublin, the father and son rose to the helm of an international crime empire that has been estimated to have a worth of\u00a0\u20ac1bn (\u00a3835m).\u00a0<\/p>\n Daniel, 48,\u00a0is thought to be in charge of the gang, whose activities have ranged from large-scale drug trafficking to murder to\u00a0purported money laundering links to\u00a0Hezbollah.\u00a0\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Intelligence seen by\u00a0Metro\u00a0previously unveiled the family\u2019s web across the\u00a0world, linking to front businesses,\u00a0lawyers\u00a0and companies.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n At the heart of the\u00a0network map\u00a0put together\u00a0by private investigators\u00a0is Chisty, 69, who lives up to his\u00a0\u2018Dapper Don\u2019\u00a0nickname by being a regular visitor at Dubai\u2019s Michelin-starred restaurants.<\/p>\n Daniel\u00a0befriended\u00a0Tyson Fury<\/a>\u00a0as the\u00a0Kinahans ventured\u00a0into boxing, with the fighter attending the gang boss\u2019s extravagant wedding to Caoimhe Robinson in the Gulf city\u2019s\u00a0\u2018seven-star\u2019\u00a0Burj Al Arab hotel.\u00a0<\/p>\n Daniel,\u00a0nicknamed \u2018Chess\u2019 for his strategic thinking,\u00a0has been named as\u00a0a\u00a0key figure\u00a0in a \u2018super\u00a0cartel\u2019 and has a wealth estimated at \u00a3740\u00a0million by Ireland\u2019s\u00a0An\u00a0Garda\u00a0Sioch\u00e1na\u00a0police service.\u00a0<\/p>\n A lax approach to illicit money among the Dubai authorities is widely believed to be the reason why the\u00a0Kinahans\u00a0are able to maintain their lives in the oil-rich Gulf state.<\/p>\n Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n For more stories like this, check our news page<\/a>.<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"Handout](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/SEI_280077861-71d4.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe US has a bounty of \u00a35,000,000 for Daniel (Picture: PA)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/SEC_280079279-bb3f.jpg\")
\n\t\tDaniel Kinahan has been living luxuriously in Dubai for ten years (Pictures: Solarpix\/Getty)<\/p>\n
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