The Irish and Spanish raids targeting the Family drugs gang, headquartered in Dublin, have significantly disrupted the biggest supply route of cocaine into the Republic, gardaí believe. Though some of those involved in the drug smuggling network will seek to resume their activities immediately, Garda sources said, they are now in a much weaker position.
Senior officers believe the discovery of The Family’s distribution hub in Castellón de la Plana in eastern Spain – where drugs and vehicles were seized by the Guardia Civil this week – represents a big blow to the criminal network.
Four trucks and 12 luxury vehicles were seized in Spain, many with secret compartments for smuggling drugs into Ireland. A total of 314kg of cocaine, valued at about €25 million, and 220kg of marijuana was also taken from the gang as part of a transnational investigation that began late last year.
Garda sources said, however, while the raids targeting the group’s logistics operation in Spain will significantly disrupt The Family’s activities, they also believe the group would prove resilient. They pointed out some of the older members of the gang – led by brothers from west Dublin – had been involved in the drugs trade for almost three decades.
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Given their experience, the wealth they had already accrued and large network of associates they had built around them in Ireland and Spain, The Family would seek to retain its position as the biggest drugs gang in Ireland.
It has emerged as the biggest importer of drugs into the Republic since the demise of Dublin’s “Byrne organised crime group”. The Byrne group effectively ran the Kinahan cartel’s Irish operation before a big Garda clampdown, in response to the Kinahan-Hutch feud, closed it down.
As the Byrne group’s demise was occurring from about 2016 to 2018, The Family became the dominant player on the domestic drug scene, having been a significant player, especially in Dublin, for many years.
As well as the Spanish operation this week targeting the logistics base where drugs were packed and concealed for transport to Ireland, some of the most senior figures in The Family gang, who have remained living in Dublin, were arrested by gardaí on Monday.
Gardaí have been liaising with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) throughout the week with a view to charging the arrested men. Three of the suspects are related to each other and are regarded as comprising most of the top tier leadership that runs the gang.
The other arrested men, of six in total detained in Ireland, fill key roles in areas such as technology and logistics for the gang. Gardaí are hopeful criminal charges will be approved before the men’s periods of detention expire at the weekend and in to next week.
A leading figure in the Family gang is already facing criminal charges after a large sum of cash and other assets were seized during a Garda operation some time ago.
