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The Journal
04-07-2025
- The Journal
Eight men sentenced to lengthy jail terms for their part in biggest ever drug seizure in Ireland
EIGHT MEN HAVE been sentenced to a range of prison terms ranging from 13 years to 20 years for their part in Ireland's biggest ever drugs seizure. The men were all arrested after a spectacular Garda, Revenue Customs and Defence Forces operation targeting the MV Matthew bulk carrier cargo ship and the Castlemore trawler off the east and south coasts in September 2023. Army Ranger Wing (ARW) special forces operators fastroped from a helicopter onto the deck of the MV Matthew off Waterford on 26 September 2023. Previously Detective Superintendent Keith Halley, who led the investigation, outlined the facts. He had been the garda liaison with the Joint Task Force and worked closely with Revenue Customs. Advertisement He told the court that an intelligence led operation by gardaí and customs, the ARW along with the naval ship LÉ William Butler Yeats were deployed. They seized the ship which was running for the Atlantic and heading to the African country of Sierra Leone as their plan to smuggle 2.2 tonnes or €157m worth of cocaine fell apart. The MV Matthew was bought by an organised crime group for the sole aim of smuggling the drugs to Ireland. The accused were identified after a lengthy investigation which included the downloading a phones and chat groups they were using to communicate with crime gang handlers in Dubai. The accused from the Matthew are: Iranian Saied Hassani (39), Filipino Harold Estoesta (31), Ukrainian Mykhailo Gavryk (32), Ukrainian Vitali Vlasoi (32), Iranian ship's captain Soheil Jelveh (51) and Dutch Cumali Ozgen (49). The men on the Castlemore were Ukrainian Vitaliy Lapa (62) and UK Jamie Harbron (31). They had pleaded guilty at the Special Criminal Court to offences specific to the commission of offences under drug trafficking act. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
The Journal
02-07-2025
- The Journal
Customs team begin 'deep rummage' search of suspected mothership in wake of €31m cocaine bust
CUSTOMS OFFICERS HAVE begun a detailed specialist search of a cargo ship as part of the investigation into the seizure of €31m worth of cocaine, The Journal has learned. The large ship was unloading its cargo at an Irish port this morning having arrived in Ireland yesterday from South America. Yesterday morning, in a large-scale operation , in the seas off the west Cork town of Courtmacsherry, members of the Naval Service, Revenue Customs and gardaí captured the crew of a Rigid Inflatable Hulled Boat (RHIB) and two men in a van allegedly moving the drugs. It is believed that the cocaine had been landed at Broad Strand near the town at around 4am yesterday. Gardaí later stopped the van with the two men on board. The pair were from Germany and the UK, sources said. Out at sea it's understood the RHIB that had delivered the drugs fled and was pursued by two Naval Service armed fast boats. The Journal observed as both of those speed boat suspects were arrested yesterday by detectives at Haulbowline Naval Base in Cork Harbour. It's also emerged that the two men aboard the speed boat had arrived in a town in West Cork in recent days having travelled from the UK by sea. The crew of the LÉ William Butler Yeats had arrived off Courtmacsherry shortly after 2.30pm. Advertisement The Yeats was the vessel from which the operation to net Ireland's biggest drugs seizure – - from the MV Matthew – was launched, in 2023 . Sources have said the smuggling operation was a similar method as with the Matthew – the so-called mothership had arrived into Irish waters from a South American port. She was then allegedly met by the RHIB which conveyed the drugs back to shore. It is believed that this was an international drugs gang as opposed to an Irish-only operation, although criminals in Ireland are suspected to be involved. The intelligence for the operation came from abroad and national units, while Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau were leading the Garda side of the operation. The National Surveillance Unit and other specialised national teams were also involved. Revenue Customs investigators were also heavily involved and the Joint Task Force, which is a multi-agency group which deals with largescale interdictions, was stood up. Their specialist search team have been performing a 'deep rummage' search of the cargo ship this morning, and this is likely to go on for a number of days. This is a highly skilled and specialised activity carried out by Customs officers wearing breathing apparatus and occurs deep inside the ship. Despite some reports, the Army Ranger Wing were not involved on this occasion and the military side of the intervention was handled by the Naval Service with surveillance assistance from the CASA C295 Maritime patrol aircraft based in Baldonnel. The four men arrested in the initial stages of the operation continue to be questioned under the provisions of Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act. It is understood the alleged offences they have been arrested for are for enhancing the ability of an organised crime group to commit offences in the State or abroad. Garda and Revenue Customs spokespeople did not respond to queries on the state of the investigation today, and said they could not comment as it was an ongoing operation. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
The Journal
03-06-2025
- Business
- The Journal
Iranian smugglers, Dubai gangsters and the frantic crew texts as Irish Special Forces boarded
A COURT HAS heard that sanction dodging Iranian shipping ghost fleet companies with connections in Venezuela were heavily involved with a crime gang in Dubai in the funding and organisation of the largest drug shipment ever seized in Ireland. Detective Superintendent Keith Halley led the garda operation that captured the MV Matthew in a daring Army Ranger Wing (ARW) operation off the Wexford and Waterford coast. Halley told of how the case began with intelligence from MAOC-N in Portugal and also from Irish Customs. Garda intelligence specialists also gathered information and the Irish Joint Task Force began to target the MV Matthew. In his evidence he spoke of the bravery of the ARW operators who fought high winds, rolling seas and a ship manoeuvring trying to stop them to get on board. Prosecuting Barrister John Berry read text messages exchanged between the crew members and people in Dubai that told them to run for open water. The court heard that the ARW operators' helicopter had to fly higher than normal and their rope that they used to get aboard the ship was not reaching the pitching metal work below. They were forced to slide down the rope and drop from a height the rest of the way to the rolling deck. He also spoke about how the Customs, on board the Irish Navy Ship LÉ William Butler Yeats had hailed the Matthew repeatedly and directed them to Cork. But the Matthew raced south to international waters. The Captain of the Yeats, Lt Commander Alan Flynn, using the call sign 'Warship 63″, took over control and directed warning shots to be fired. At one point the drug runners told them on the radio 'they don't want problems'. 'I don't like problems either – I want you to change your course. Alter your course to Cork…,' the Captain declared. Halley was giving an outline of the facts of the case in the Special Criminal Court today ahead of the sentencing of eight crew members who have pleaded guilty to their part in the operation. Irish naval vessel LE William Butler Yeats escorts Bulk carrier MV Matthew outside Roches Point, Cork on 26 September, 2023. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo Iranian nexus While being questioned by Michael Bowman SC, who is defence counsel for the Iranian captain Soheil Jelveh, Halley said that there is a 'major Iranian nexus to this operation'. He said it was orchestrated by Iranian and transnational organised crime groups. The three judge court viewed a presentation today that outlined the garda investigation that included a slideshow of various text message exchanged between the crew and organisers based in Dubai. Eight men have pleaded guilty to their part in the trafficking of 2.2 tonnes of €152m worth of drugs into the Irish state in September 2023. The court heard that six of the men were onboard the MV Matthew with the drugs and they were to meet two other men onboard the Castlemore, a fishing boat that had been purchased just days earlier by a Dubai based man. The accused from the Matthew are: Iranian Saied Hassani (39), Filipino Harold Estoesta (31), Ukrainian Mykhailo Gavryk (32), Ukrainian Vitalit Vlasoi (32), Iranian ship's captain Soheil Jelveh (51) and Dutch Cumali Ozgen (49). The men on the Castlemore were Ukrainian Vitaliy Lapa (62) and UK Jamie Harbron (31). They are all charged with offences regarding trafficking and assisting an organised crime group to import drugs into the Irish State. Dramatic In dramatic evidence Halley told the court that the accused repeatedly ignored radio calls from the Irish Naval ship LÉ William Butler Yeats and despite the ship firing warning shots towards the Matthew. Advertisement Before that Halley told the court and showed CCTV images that documented Lapa and Harbron's journey to Castletownbere in the company of a man from Dubai and two other people from Scotland. The CCTV was captured from shops and on one occasion inside a McDonalds. They bought the Castlemore and sailed out of Castletownbere – unbeknownst to them, Halley said, they were being watched by a garda surveillance team. The Matthew had sailed across the Atlantic having loaded the drugs off the coast of Venezuela. Halley said that during that trip the ship had used a tactic known as spoofing to hide its actual location from GPS shipping trackers. The weather descended into chaos and the Castlemore began to struggle to maintain any speed. Eventually it would run aground and partially sink off Wexford in the Irish Sea. The two men Vitaliy Lapa and Jamie Harbron were rescued by Coastguard helicopter. They were brought to a the LÉ William Butler Yeats. They would subsequently be arrested but their phones held evidence of messaging apps that contained a treasure trove of information for gardaí. In another dramatic twist the captain of the Matthew, the Iranian national Soheil Jelveh, was airlifted off the ship because of a medical issue. He left with two suitcases, phones and $50,000 US dollars. The gardaí took possession of his phones and would also, once the crew were arrested harvest their phones also. He told the gardaí that his family in Dubai were in danger from the drug gang. The helicopter moves in as the Ranger Wing begin their boarding. Irish Defence Forces Irish Defence Forces Frustrated Gardaí discovered the drama contained on the crew's messaging phone apps. There were two specific messaging apps with contacts from the drugs gang commanders in Dubai as well as the crew discussing how to evade capture. The messages showed organisers and the crew becoming frustrated that the Castlemore had sunk but then coming up with a plan to get another vessel to come and meet them, possibly from Dublin. Halley said it showed the reach of the organised crime group and its ability to get another gang cell to come to the aid of the Matthew and offload the ship. The chat groups on the messaging apps also showed images of the Air Corps helicopter and the Naval vessel from inside the bridge. There were discussions about what to do next. They ultimately decided to run for international waters hoping that the Irish military would not follow. But Halley said that the laws of the sea permit an intervention if it is a 'hot pursuit' situation. The messages also showed the loading of the drugs from the ship – using large skip like white bags. When the Castlemore floundered the plan was then to put the drugs in one of the ship's lifeboats and offload it with a crewman aboard and sail to meet gang members on land. That was scrubbed also and as the navy and Ranger wing operators came close there were frantic calls on the messaging apps to burn the drugs in the lifeboat with paint thinner. The court was shown an infrared photograph from an Irish Air Corps PC12 surveillance aircraft showing the heat from the burning lifeboat. Ultimately the Ranger Wing boarded and the ship was taken into Cobh – the court heard that one of the Ranger Wing operators had experience of serving as a naval officer and he put the ship on a course back to Ireland. The Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau arrested the men and they were subsequently charged. Halley will continue his evidence tomorrow before Ms Justice Melanie Greally, Judge Sarah Berkeley and Judge Grainne Malone. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
