Gerry Hutch, the Dublin criminal known as The Monk, is expected to appear before the courts in Lanzarote as early as Friday to face charges of money laundering. The Irish Times understands a decision to seek charges against the 61-year-old was made at a Guardia Civil case conference on the island on Thursday.
Hutch, who splits his time between Clontarf in Dublin and Lanzarote, was expected to be charged with money laundering offences while a group of his associates, between five and 10, were also expected to face charges.
Some of those who will stand accused alongside him are Irish and are very closely associated with Hutch while others are believed to be Spanish citizens.
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News that Hutch is set to be charged has emerged a day after he was arrested on the island as part of the Spanish money laundering investigation which has been ongoing for more than two years. Some 10 searches were carried out in Spain on Wednesday, and arrests made, while Hutch’s house in Clontarf, Dublin, was searched at the same time after a request from Spanish police.
Hutch has strong ties to Lanzarote, over many years, and has effectively retired there, though still spends time in his native Dublin. The Spanish police are investigating an alleged effort to launder money on the island by investing in, or buying, businesses as well as acquiring property there, where Hutch has a home. The inquiry resulted in a wave of searches in 2022.
Members of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation were in Lanzarote on Wednesday to support the Guardia Civil operation. At least one Spanish officer was also present in Dublin when Mr Hutch’s home was searched.
The Dublin search team was supported by the Criminal Assets Bureau (Cab) and the Emergency Response Unit. The searches in the Republic and by the Spanish police were the latest phase of what is a long-running criminal investigation, with searches also carried out in Spain in 2022 as part of the same case.
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In 2019, in evidence by Cab to the High Court — in a case against gang leader Liam Byrne — Mr Hutch was identified as leading what the bureau described as “the Hutch organised crime group” in Dublin. In the same evidence, he was named as a key protagonist on one side of the Kinahan-Hutch feud, with Byrne, Daniel Kinahan, and Freddie Thompson on the opposing side.
Mr Hutch has been linked to multimillion armed robberies in the 1980s and 1990s. He previously settled with Cab after a judgment of almost £2 million.
He was arrested in Lanzarote in 2021 to be extradited to the Republic to face a charge of murdering David Byrne (34) at the Regency Hotel attack in Dublin in 2016. However, he was acquitted by the Special Criminal Court last year and since then has divided his time between Dublin and Lanzarote.
