Kinahan cartel leader Daniel Kinahan will be extradited from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the Republic in the coming days, The Irish Times has learned. Details are being finalised of a major security operation for his return. Sources familiar with the security plan have said the married father of five could be back in Dublin within days, possibly by Sunday or Monday. Even if some element of the process is delayed, he will be extradited next week, they said.There have been no confirmed sightings of Kinahan in Ireland since he attended the 2016 funeral in Dublin of David Byrne. He was shot dead during the Hutch gang attack at the Regency Hotel in February 2016, although the armed gang’s main target was Kinahan.The 49-year-old has been named by US and European agencies as leader of the Kinahan cartel and a key figure in the European super cartel, which, from Dubai, has controlled about a third of Europe’s cocaine supply.Kinahan has been An Garda Síochána’s top criminal target for more than a decade, closely followed by his father and brother, Christy and Christopher jnr. He has been in custody since his arrest in Dubai in April on foot of an extradition request from the Irish authorities.The Department of Justice said it had no comment to make, while the Defence Forces said it “does not comment on operational matters for reasons of operational security”.Garda Headquarters also declined to make any substantive comment on the extradition of Kinahan, who has lived openly in Dubai for a decade.“Any questions on the arrest and detention of the Irish national in Dubai remains a matter for the authorities in the United Arab Emirates at this time,” the Garda said in reply to queries.Air Corps personnel, accompanied by Garda members, are expected to fly a C295, or the new Government jet, to Dubai, where the UAE authorities will hand over Kinahan. [ Daniel Kinahan expected to face single charge, with evidence relating to murder, drugs and launderingOpens in new window ]He will then be flown back to Ireland, in the custody of the armed Irish personnel, landing at Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, Co Dublin.Kinahan is likely to be brought straight to the Special Criminal Court, at the Criminal Courts of Justice (CCJ), in Dublin’s north inner city.Kinahan will face a charge of directing organised crime, including during the period of the Kinahan-Hutch feud.A major security operation, involving armed gardaí and military personnel travelling in convoy, will be in place to escort Kinahan from Baldonnel to the courthouse and then to Portlaoise Prison, Co Laois. A new blast-proof and bulletproof prison van is expected to be used.However, the Garda also has the option of requesting a Defence Forces helicopter to take Kinahan from Baldonnel to the CCJ and then to Portlaoise. Kinahan will be the highest-risk prisoner under escort in the Republic since senior IRA leaders were in custody during the Troubles. Given the resources at his disposal, which are unparalleled in the history of Irish terrorism or organised crime, the Garda and Defence Forces must plan for the possibility that Kinahan’s associates may attempt to break him free while he is being escorted.[ Inside the Kinahan cartel’s secret phone chats: ‘Nobody is stopping until they’re all dead’Opens in new window ] Kinahan will be kept on the A5 unit in the A block in Portlaoise Prison. His close associate, Sean McGovern, who was extradited from Dubai last year, is serving a 24-year sentence at the jail for directing the cartel’s activities in Dublin.Senior Garda officers had been planning a late September return to Ireland for Kinahan. However, his appeal in the Dubai courts against his extradition was disposed of more quickly than Garda Headquarters or the Government anticipated.Though Kinahan mounted a two-stage appeal, after his extradition was initially granted by the courts in Dubai, his second appeal was unsuccessful last week. That cleared the way for his handover by the UAE to Ireland.The final details of his return were being co-ordinated between the authorities in Ireland and the UAE in recent days. Sources said those final details are a formality, with the process to bring him back set to begin shortly.