Man held in Madrid over Hutch killing is 'Viper' Foley's nephew

Dublin criminal James Quinn (34) was picked up at Madrid Airport by police investigating the murder of Gary Hutch, who was shot dead at an apartment complex near Marbella on September 24 last year.

Hutch's (33) death sparked a bloody feud which led to a further nine murders, including the shooting of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel in Dublin.

Yesterday morning, gardaí swooped on a number of properties across the capital.

Houses in Rialto, Tallaght, Clondalkin and Crumlin were targeted in the raids, which began at 6.30am.

Detective Supt Tony Howard of the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau said that the investigation was heavily focused on money laundering.

"We've seized computers, phones, €23,000 in cash, false identification papers and financial documentation in relation to banks outside this jurisdiction," Det Supt Howard said. "I believe we will have arrests in the future."

He added that the operation was about evidence gathering and "disrupting and dismantling these organised crime groups".

Large numbers of documents were seized as part of a Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) probe into the cartel.

Officers investigating the gang have seized around €1m in cash in recent weeks.

"This operation is the culmination of significant investigative activity to date and is supported by other law enforcement agencies, including La Guardia Civil," a Garda spokesman said.

At the same time as the operation in Ireland, La Guardia Civil carried out a number of raids in Spain and seized a yacht worth €100,000 as well as a Bentley car worth €200,000 along with cash.

The Spanish police, joined by their Garda counterparts, also searched properties linked to the killing.

Det Supt Howard said gardaí have helped Spanish police identify suspects as part of the Gary Hutch investigation.

"In terms of sharing information around the murder of Gary Hutch, we can help them interpret documentation and vice versa. We have several members there on the ground assisting and interpreting documents for the Guardia Civil and identifying suspects. It is ultimately about identifying suspects to bring before the courts, either here or in Spain," he said.

He thanked members of La Guardia Civil who were in Dublin.

Quinn is extremely well known to gardaí because of his involvement in organised crime and he has strong links to the Kinahan cartel. He is expected to appear before a local court today. It is understood Quinn has been living in Spain for several years and had built up a reputation as an enforcer.

He has around 70 convictions here and in July 2013 he received a one-year jail sentence for attacking a bouncer's car with a hammer. He used to be regularly seen at his uncle 'The Viper' Foley's side, but has not been seen in his company much in recent times.

Foley (65) was officially warned by gardaí earlier this year about an active threat against his life because of the capital's gangland feud, which he is not involved in.