Ireland Seizes 'Significant' Quantity of Suspected Drugs From Cargo Ship

Storyful
1 年前

The Irish military and police recovered a significant quantity of suspected cocaine in a raid on a ship off the coast of Cork on Tuesday, September 26, days after a trawler suspected to be linked to the haul ran aground in Wexford.

Ireland’s national police force, the Garda Siochana, said on Tuesday evening that its officers, the Irish Defence Forces, and Revenue members coordinated the operation, which resulted in the boarding and detention of the Panama-registered bulk cargo ship MV Matthew early that morning, and the recovery of a “substantial” amount of narcotics, according to the Irish Air Corps.

Army Ranger Wing personnel secured the ship before it was searched, the police said, and media reported that naval officers fired warning shots during the operation.

Three men, aged 31, 50, and 60, were arrested on suspicion of organized crime offenses and were detained in Wexford.

The operation came two days after a trawler, purchased the previous day in western County Cork, ran around off Ireland’s southern coast in bad weather. The military were searching for possible drugs that may have been thrown overboard, The Irish Times said. Credit: Irish Defence Forces via Storyful