Spanish police fear the brother of former Ireland international Wes Hoolahan was killed by gangsters linked to the Kinahan cartel after he vanished from Marbella in June, it has emerged.
Detectives are also looking at a suspected attempt to kidnap him from his home around three months earlier.
Darren Hoolahan, a 37-year-old father of two from Dublin, had lived on the Costa del Sol for several years and worked in Marbella’s nightlife industry.
His family reported him missing on June 10. Five men were arrested on the Costa del Sol on October 27 in connection with his disappearance.
According to The Irish Sun, detectives traced his last known movements to a meeting at a cafe in the expat haven of San Pedro de Alcantara.
They believe he may then have been taken against his will to an isolated spot near Estepona, around 20km away.
Officers searched the site where they suspect he was held but found no trace of him.
Armed men reportedly raided his villa in March
CCTV captured three men raiding Hoolahan’s Marbella villa on March 25 while he was away, SUR reported, citing sources close to the investigation who described it as a suspected kidnapping attempt.
Respected national newspaper El Español reported that the men carried pistols.
The video footage has since surfaced online, showing a group of masked men attempting to force their way into the property.
SUR also reported that Hoolahan was under police investigation when he disappeared in connection with a gun attack on La Sala restaurant in Puerto Banus on March 11, 2024.
Four remanded in Marbella as fifth suspect held over separate case
The men arrested include a suspected coordinator of the Kinahan cartel’s operations in Spain and an alleged hitman previously linked to another Dublin crime group, according to The Irish Sun.
A Marbella judge remanded four Irish nationals in custody without bail.
The fifth suspect, a British national, was initially granted conditional bail in the Marbella case before being re-arrested on an international warrant issued by Spain’s National Court over an unrelated matter.
Judicial sources told Europa Press that Marbella’s Investigating Court No. 4 is examining alleged unlawful detention, possession of military-grade weapons, membership of a criminal organisation and public health offences.
Darren’s older brother Wes won 43 caps for the Republic of Ireland and played for Norwich City, Blackpool and Shelbourne. Darren remains missing.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
