Northern Ireland

Daniel Kinahan dropped as advisor to Bahrain sports management company

Daniel Kinahan has been dropped as an advisor to a sports management company owned by a member of the Royal family in Bahrain
Daniel Kinahan has been dropped as an advisor to a sports management company owned by a member of the Royal family in Bahrain Daniel Kinahan has been dropped as an advisor to a sports management company owned by a member of the Royal family in Bahrain

A SPORTS company in the Middle East has cut ties with high-profile Irish gangland leader Daniel Kinahan.

KHK Sports, which is owned by the King of Bahrain’s son, confirmed yesterday it had "discontinued its engagement" with the 42-year-old Dubliner who was appointed as a "special advisor" last month due to his experience in the "world of combat sports".

The development follows the furore over British heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury revealing Kinahan's major role in securing a two-fight deal with Anthony Joshua.

The KHK statement was confirmed by the government information service in Bahrain, according to RTÉ.

Fury's social media video thanking Kinahan's for his role in brokering the fight led to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar making a statement in the Dáil last week, in which he had confirmed contact between the Department of Foreign Affairs and the authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Mr Varadkar also said he had been "taken aback" to see Fury in his video just dropping "that name ... as if this was somebody who did not have quite a chequered history in this State and elsewhere".

Kinahan, who lives in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has been identified in the Republic's High Court as one of the main figures who "controlled and managed" the Kinahan organised crime group, which is estimated to be worth well in excess of €1 billion.

The group has also been found by the Special Criminal Court to carry out "execution type murders to protect its core activities" drugs trafficking and firearms offences.