Gerry Hutch’s previous efforts to evade arrest in Spain could disrupt bail efforts, gardaí say – The Irish Times

Prominent Dublin criminal Gerry Hutch is likely to apply for bail after being detained on the Spanish island of Lanzarote, but gardaí believe he could remain in custody for at least several months.

The 61-year-old Dubliner was one of nine men to appear in court in Lanzarote last Friday over an alleged gang-related money laundering conspiracy. Mr. Hutch was detained along with another suspect, while the other seven people detained were released on bail.

Mr Hutch is expected to apply for bail and could do so immediately, but Garda sources said it was unclear whether he would be released in the short term. The scope of the investigation, which spanned more than two years, and Mr. Hutch’s previous efforts to evade arrest in Spain could be used by authorities to appeal the bail decision, they said.

In early 2021, a European arrest warrant was issued by the courts in Dublin for Mr Hutch, who is wanted to stand trial for the murder of David Byrne in the Regency Hotel in Dublin in 2016. Hutch left Lanzarote in March of the same year. Gardaí suspect he was given information that his arrest and extradition were sought. He was not eventually located until August 2021, when he was arrested in Malaga and extradited to Ireland.

Although he was tried by the Special Criminal Court for Mr Byrne’s murder, he was acquitted last year and released from court after 20 months in detention in Spain and Ireland. Since his acquittal he has spent most of his time in Lanzarote, but has also lived periodically in Dublin.

But last Wednesday the Guardia Civil carried out 10 searches in Span, including Mr Hutch’s home in Lanzarote; As a result, Hutch was arrested and nine suspects appeared in court on Friday. The suspects are allegedly linked to money laundering in Spain. Spanish police claimed that the money laundering was carried out by an international criminal gang.

While Mr Hutch’s home in Lanzarote was being searched, gardaí were also searching his home in Clontarf, north Dublin, following a request for assistance from Spanish authorities. The first wave of searches in the investigation was carried out in Spain in 2022.

The investigation alleges money from crime was laundered through businesses and property transactions in Spain, including Lanzarote. Mr Hutch has long had close ties to the island, where he lived for long periods and owned property.

A number of other criminals, including members of the Kinahan cartel, who were arrested in Spain for their alleged involvement in organized crime, were eventually released on bail only after months in detention. In most of these cases, once the suspects were released on bail, most charges against them were stayed.

For example, in 2010, Kinahan cartel founder Christy Kinahan Snr and his sons Daniel and Christopher Jnr were arrested in southern Spain as part of Operation Shovel, which investigated drug trafficking, money laundering and arms smuggling, among other crimes.

The Kinahans were denied bail, but bail was eventually granted after the father and sons spent seven months in custody. Gradually serious allegations against them were dropped.

Last June, it was revealed that a man identified by US law enforcement as a key figure at the top of the international Kinahan cartel had just been released from custody in Spain after posting bail of 60,000 euros. Johnny Morrissey was arrested in September 2022 following an investigation into allegations that he laundered money for the cartel.