This is the moment a gang allegedly linked to the Kinahans was arrested over the disappearance of a footballer’s brother in Marbella.
Darren Hoolahan, 37, has not been seen since he attended a meeting at a cafe in the expat haven of San Pedro de Alcantara on June 10. He is the brother of former Republic of Ireland footballer Wes Hoolahan.
Spanish police believe he was abducted from the town before being taken to a remote area in Estepona some 20km away. They fear he was killed but have yet to find any trace of him.
An investigation soon revealed that an armed group of masked men had attempted to storm his Marbella home some three months earlier, with the chilling footage caught on CCTV.
Police also said several vehicles at his home had been set on fire a month before he vanished.
At the end of October, four Irish men and an English national, aged between 28 and 58, were arrested in an operation that saw officers search six properties across Estepona and Benahavis.
Irish media have reported a suspected link to the Kinahan cartel. The Policia Nacional described the suspected kidnapping as a settling of scores between rival gangs.
What police seized
Officers recovered an AK-47 assault rifle, a submachine gun, three handguns, one fitted with a silencer, and a large machete.
They also seized 37.8kg of hashish, €61,520 in cash, eight cars, including one reported stolen, and mobile phones and computer equipment.
All five suspects were remanded in custody.
They are under investigation for suspected unlawful detention, weapons offences, membership of a criminal organisation, drug trafficking and vehicle theft.
One was already wanted in Ireland under a European Arrest Warrant over an alleged violent robbery.
The search for Hoolahan remains open.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
