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Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Bags of cocaine from cargo ship had GPS tags, Special Criminal Court hears
GPS-tagged bags of cocaine, floating into Denmark's beaches, are believed to be linked to a foiled plot by 10 men arrested in West Cork to collect drugs from a ship called the Cool Explorer. A rigid inflatable boat (Rib), carrying three 300 horsepower engines and large quantities of fuel, tried to meet a Panama-flagged ship called the Cool Explorer off the UK coast in March 2024, the State alleges. That ship, a legitimate cargo vessel carrying legitimate cargo, was also believed to have been carrying at least 850kg of cocaine with a street value of between €58m and €59m. That cocaine was later washed into beaches near the Danish town of Sjællands Odde. The foiled alleged drug trafficking operation was intercepted by Irish authorities and 10 men were arrested for conspiracy to import drugs. Seven of the 10 men have now pleaded guilty at the Special Criminal Court. They are Dutch national Kiumaars Ghabiri, aged 52, Spanish nationals Mario Angel Del Rio Sanz, aged 45, of no fixed address, Juan Antonio Gallardo Barroso, aged 56, of no fixed address, Pedro Pablo Ojeda Ortega, aged 36, of Cadiz; Angel Serran Padilla, aged 40, of Malaga; Anuar Rahui Chairi, aged 42, of Marbella; and Serbian national Aleksander Milic, aged 46. Tessa White, prosecuting counsel for the State, said that an overview of the conspiracy would first be given at the Special Criminal Court for the seven men's sentence hearings. More detail will be heard on Tuesday. Inspector Joseph Young of Bandon Garda Station gave evidence in the Special Criminal Court on Monday. Investigation At a routine checkpoint at Gully outside Bandon on February 27, 2024, gardaí stopped a vehicle with two individuals — a foreign national and an Irish national. Gardaí noticed one of the men was 'nervous and evasive' and elected to carry out a search, and the men were subsequently brought to Bandon garda station, Insp Young said. A notepad was found in the vehicle, which contained an entry about a pier in Roscarbery in West Cork and a second pier called Dromadoon near Skibbereen. GPS coordinates for both were recorded. Six B&Bs were also noted, with the times of how long it would take to travel from each to the two piers. On March 12, 2024, gardaí received reports of suspicious activity at Tragumna pier in West Cork. Tragumna is between the two piers, which had their names and GPS coordinates recorded in the notebook. Tragumna is about 6k south of Skibbereen town and 15k from Leap village, the court heard. An articulated truck had been seen reversing down the pier, and a campervan and other vehicles were observed operating suspiciously nearby, Insp Young said. Gardaí were also monitoring two vehicles — a black Land Rover Discovery vehicle and a white campervan — initially seen outside a popular West Cork hotel. One man linked to the vehicles checked into the hotel on March 12 using a Rotterdam-based credit card. Gardaí suspected a criminal enterprise was working to import drugs at this stage, Insp Young said. Some weeks earlier, the Panamanian flagged Cool Explorer refrigerated cargo vessel left Ecuador destined for St Petersburg, Russia, due to arrive on March 17, 2024. The ship was a legitimate cargo vessel carrying legitimate cargo, Insp Young said. The ship was to pass by Lands End in the south of the UK around March, 12, 2024. On March 14 – 15, the Cool Explorer passed an area of Denmark called Sjællands Odde on the northwestern tip of the main island of Zealand. Some 840kg of cocaine, worth an estimated €58m to €59m was discovered subsequently washed up on beaches in the area. GPS units were attached to the bags of cocaine, which matched the coordinates used by the Cool Explorer, the court heard. Juan Antonio Gallardo arriving at Midleton Courthouse, Co Cork, last year. Picture: Larry Cummins Activity in Cork Three vehicles were observed by gardaí at Tragumna pier acting suspiciously after midnight on March 14. A campervan was observed leaving an Airbnb in the village of Leap and travelling towards Tragumna. The black Land Rover and the Bulgarian-registered blue Scalia articulated truck were also seen approaching the pier. At 5.10am, a black Rib was seen approaching the pier with people on board. The articulated truck had reversed down the pier just before the Rib's arrival. People alighted from three different vehicles, and then people from the rib and the pier began passing multiple hold all bags from the rib to the pier, Insp Young said. A trailer was then winched from the back of the articulated truck, and the Rib was loaded onto it. But the men 'had some difficulty' with the manoeuvre, and the back of the boat and its engines were 'still sticking out of the back' of the articulated truck after it was loaded. At 7.20am, the white campervan gardaí had been watching was interdicted. Five Spaniards — including four who have pleaded guilty — Mr Ortega, Mr Chairi, Mr Barroso, Mr Padilla and one Serbian, Mr Milic — were arrested from the vehicle. The rest of the 10 men were arrested minutes later at a second interdiction at Tragumna pier at 7.25am. The Rib was in the back of the Scania truck with the 'intention to rendezvous with the Cool Explorer', Ms White said. Insp Young agreed that this was for an 'at sea' drop off. The rendezvous was to take place close to the UK, Ms White said. The articulated truck had Bulgarian plates and was registered to a company in Northern Ireland which had a sister company in Bulgaria. The campervan had been hired from a legitimate company in the Armagh area. It was driven south by one of the accused who said he was going to Cork and Kerry with family for the week. The Land Rover had been stolen some months earlier in the UK, and had fake number plates. A 'significant amount' of high-end nautical clothing and nautical equipment and its receipts were seized from the vehicles and an AirBnB. It had been bought in a nautical shop in Cork city, a Decathlon in Belfast, and on the UK mainland. Dry suits and nautical technology, including thermal imaging binoculars, two-way radios, and Meridiam satellite phones, were seized. Some 50 devices were seized in total, including multiple phones. A high frequency detector, known as a boat detector to law enforcement, was also seized. Gary Delaney, a former naval officer, compiled a report on the Rib. It had three 300 horsepower Yamaha engines onboard and a very large quantity of fuel. Its control panels and radar dome — which are generally white — had been spray painted black or darkened, Insp Young said. While such a vessel would usually have lights to the front and rear — only one was present and was not very visible. VHF radio would usually be found on board, but this was not present. No radar reflector had been fitted, something which is usually standard in a vessel of that type. The purpose of the Rib seemed to be detecting while not being detected, Mr Delaney's report noted. A Garmin GPS device was on the Rib's console, and two additional handheld Garmin devices were found in Leap, which were also examined by Mr Delaney. Aleksander Milic arriving at Midleton Courthouse, Co Cork, last year. Picture: Larry Cummins He found that the Rib had been at Tragumna pier around 5am on March 12, 2024, which tallied with reports of suspicious activity there that morning. Some 27 waypoints — which record geographic coordinates to assist with navigation — were found in the console of the Rib. The waypoints showed that the Rib had made a 985k journey in just under 48 hours. It showed a travel path towards the Cool Explorer and that it changed its course twice to seemingly intercept the Cool Explorer's passage. This had been noted near Lizard Point off the south west coast of the UK, Ms White noted, where the RIB allegedly tried to meet the larger ship. But the boat then made its way back to Tragumna on March 14, the court heard. Sentence hearings, in front of Justice Karen O'Connor, Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin, and Judge Marie Keane, are to continue at 10.30am tomorrow in the Special Criminal Court. But three men plan to contest the charge at trial. The only Irish national arrested as part of the operation, Sean Curran, aged 38, with an address at Carrickyheenan, Aughnacloy, Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh, is one of three men waiting for a trial date. He is on bail and is to appear again on Monday at the Special Criminal Court when a trial date may be set. Ali Ghasemi Mazidi, aged 50, with an address in the Netherlands, and Raul Tabares Garcia, aged 48, of Cadiz in Spain are to appear via videolink on Monday for a trial date. These three men's trials are expected to take some six to eight weeks. The 10 men are charged with conspiring with one another to import controlled drugs over €13,000 on dates between February 27 and March 14, 2024, both dates inclusive. The alleged offence is contrary to Section 15 B(1) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977. Gardaí arrested the 10 men in March last year during operations in the villages of Tragumna and Leap near Skibbereen in West Cork, where an off-road vehicle, camper van, articulated truck, and rigid inflatable boat were seized as part of the suspected drug smuggling operation. Read More Spanish man pleads guilty to conspiring to smuggle large quantity of drugs into Ireland
Qatar Tribune
05-07-2025
- Qatar Tribune
Dramatic footage of Ireland's largest drugs seizure released
London: Dramatic footage of the daring operation which led to the seizure of Ireland's largest drugs haul onboard a container ship has been released to the public. It follows the sentencing of eight men on Friday following the seizure of 2.2 tonnes of cocaine with a value of $184 million in September 2023. The drugs were seized after the Irish Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel from helicopters in an interception conducted while the crew attempted to steer the ship to high seas. Eight men admitted their roles in trying to smuggle cocaine as part of a massive drug trafficking operation. A range of material relating to the investigation has now been made public, including audio recordings between the captain of the container ship and the Irish Naval Service which was in 'hot pursuit' of the criminals. That pursuit included the firing of warning shots by the Naval Service before the Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel. The aerial footage and audio recordings detail a dramatic operation carried out at sea in gale force winds and involving Ireland's joint task force on drugs interdiction, which includes the Irish police service An Garda Siochana, Revenue, and the Defence Forces. The operation also involved the Coast Guard and international partners including Interpol and the Maritime Analysis And Operations Centre (Narcotics). The newly published material shows how the Panama-flagged MV Matthew entered Irish territorial waters on September 23 2023 - having set off from Curacao, an island off the coast of Venezuela. Unbeknown to the crew, suspicions about its activities had been relayed to An Garda Siochana and the drugs and organised crime bureau was monitoring the ship. (PA Media/dpa)
Powys County Times
05-07-2025
- Powys County Times
Dramatic footage of Ireland's largest drugs seizure released
Dramatic footage of the daring operation which led to the seizure of Ireland's largest drugs haul onboard a container ship has been released to the public. It follows the sentencing of eight men on Friday following the seizure of 2.2 tonnes of cocaine with a value of 157 million euro (£132 million) in September 2023. The drugs were seized after the Irish Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel from helicopters in an interception conducted while the crew attempted to steer the ship to high seas. Eight men admitted their roles in trying to smuggle cocaine as part of a massive drug trafficking operation. A range of material relating to the investigation has now been made public, including audio recordings between the captain of the container ship and the Irish Naval Service which was in 'hot pursuit' of the criminals. That pursuit included the firing of warning shots by the Naval Service before the Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel. The aerial footage and audio recordings detail a dramatic operation carried out at sea in gale force winds and involving Ireland's joint task force on drugs interdiction, which includes the Irish police service An Garda Siochana, Revenue, and the Defence Forces. The operation also involved the Coast Guard and international partners including Interpol and the Maritime Analysis And Operations Centre (Narcotics). The newly published material shows how the Panama-flagged MV Matthew entered Irish territorial waters on September 23 2023 – having set off from Curacao, an island off the coast of Venezuela. Unbeknown to the crew, suspicions about its activities had been relayed to An Garda Siochana and the drugs and organised crime bureau was monitoring the ship. The materials also show how the FV Castlemore fishing trawler, which had been purchased by two men with funding from an organised crime group, was also tracked during the operation. The two men on the FV Castlemore were communicating with criminal cells in Dubai and beyond, who in turn were in touch with the MV Matthew 'mothership'. The trawler engaged in a number of failed attempts to receive clandestine transfers of the cocaine from the MV Matthew. During what would be its final attempt, the Irish Coast Guard engaged with the trawler to warn it of dangerous conditions and inquire about its lack of movement. The FV Castlemore later put out a distress call to the Coast Guard after running aground on a sandbank off the Wexford coast. The crew were rescued by Coast Guard helicopter to the naval vessel, the LE WB Yeats – essentially having inadvertently handed themselves in for arrest. When the mothership became aware of the distress call, a change of plan was ordered. Voice messages from an individual in Dubai, identified as 'Captain Noah' and who gardai believe remains in the Middle East, show that the crew on the MV Matthew were instructed to load all cocaine into a lifeboat for a rendezvous with a different vessel – which would not occur due to the interception by Irish authorities. The newly released material shows the MV Matthew repeatedly ignore instructions from Revenue and the Naval Service's LE WB Yeats. Text messages and voice notes show panicked communications within the criminal network, including the incorrect belief that the ship would not be boarded if it headed further into international waters. While trying to evade the naval service, the LE WB Yeats entered a 'hot pursuit' and – acting as a warship – fired warning shots in the vicinity of the MV Matthew. The captain of the MV Matthew communicated that it was a commercial vessel and was not in jurisdiction covered by the Irish navy: 'Irish warship, please do not fire at us.' He added: 'Can you advise if you are in hot pursuit of us?' Criminals onboard started deleting messages and attempted to burn the cocaine onboard as Captain Noah told them they would not be boarded. He sent a voice message: 'My stress level is near to heart attack, try to be calm.' However, the Army Ranger Wing would shortly board the vessel by descending on ropes from a helicopter while the ship was moving erratically – ending the chase, leading to the successful arrests and seizure of the cocaine. Speaking to reporters about the operation on Saturday, Assistant Commissioner for Organised and Serious Crime Angela Willis said the investigation showed the Irish State's commitment to tackle organised crime. 'Transnational organised crime groups know no borders, they prey on people's vulnerability for their own financial gain. 'People are dispensable and expendable when they are no longer of use to the criminal organisation 'Life is cheap and protecting their core criminal interest – which is money – is their key priority.' Ms Willis said all those who use drugs recreationally are funding the criminal organisations and are directly linked to the suffering inflicted on communities by the gangs. The senior garda said the sentencing of the eight men came from the 'first phase' of the operation, adding that investigators are now examining pathways to other aspects of the probe – including ascertaining the origin of the funding and financing of the intercepted shipment. She said it was the belief of investigators that several 'trans-global organisations' are involved in these types of shipments. Asked if the Kinahan organised crime group was part of the MV Matthew operation, she said it was 'reasonable to assume' that it would be engaged in that type of activity. Ms Willis said the next stage of the investigation had commenced, examining 'peripheral people' in Ireland and abroad. She said the next phase would include 'asset recovery' of people involved in the drugs trade. Captain Darragh Kirwan, head of Naval Service operations, said the ongoing success of the JTF and support of international partners contributes greatly to the security of the sea and society onshore. David Caunter, Director of Organised and Emerging Crime at INTERPOL said the investigation shows the power of international co-operation among police agencies. 'This is what criminal organisations fear: Global law enforcement working together to protect our citizens and our communities'. He said law enforcement agencies must adapt to criminal groups seeking to expand their operations. Mr Caunter added: 'This investigation delivers a clear message to organised crime: 'Nowhere is safe, we will not stop, we will find you and bring you to justice.' He said organised crime groups are seeking to develop new partnerships, adding that local traffickers may not understand the larger picture of the network they operate in – including links to South America and the Middle East as well as Balkan organised crime and Lebanese groups. He also said west Africa is becoming a more important transit route in the global cocaine trade. Meanwhile, Revenue has said it is working to dispose of the MV Matthew as the cost of storing the vessel soars past nine million euro. A preferred bidder has been identified but Revenue Commissioner Ruth Kennedy said many regulations have to be adhered to before a sale can proceed. Ms Kennedy said the vessel has been kept in running order but would not provide a value on the ship.
South Wales Guardian
05-07-2025
- South Wales Guardian
Dramatic footage of Ireland's largest drugs seizure released
It follows the sentencing of eight men on Friday following the seizure of 2.2 tonnes of cocaine with a value of 157 million euro (£132 million) in September 2023. The drugs were seized after the Irish Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel from helicopters in an interception conducted while the crew attempted to steer the ship to high seas. Eight men admitted their roles in trying to smuggle cocaine as part of a massive drug trafficking operation. A range of material relating to the investigation has now been made public, including audio recordings between the captain of the container ship and the Irish Naval Service which was in 'hot pursuit' of the criminals. That pursuit included the firing of warning shots by the Naval Service before the Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel. The aerial footage and audio recordings detail a dramatic operation carried out at sea in gale force winds and involving Ireland's joint task force on drugs interdiction, which includes the Irish police service An Garda Siochana, Revenue, and the Defence Forces. The operation also involved the Coast Guard and international partners including Interpol and the Maritime Analysis And Operations Centre (Narcotics). The newly published material shows how the Panama-flagged MV Matthew entered Irish territorial waters on September 23 2023 – having set off from Curacao, an island off the coast of Venezuela. Unbeknown to the crew, suspicions about its activities had been relayed to An Garda Siochana and the drugs and organised crime bureau was monitoring the ship. The materials also show how the FV Castlemore fishing trawler, which had been purchased by two men with funding from an organised crime group, was also tracked during the operation. The two men on the FV Castlemore were communicating with criminal cells in Dubai and beyond, who in turn were in touch with the MV Matthew 'mothership'. The trawler engaged in a number of failed attempts to receive clandestine transfers of the cocaine from the MV Matthew. During what would be its final attempt, the Irish Coast Guard engaged with the trawler to warn it of dangerous conditions and inquire about its lack of movement. The FV Castlemore later put out a distress call to the Coast Guard after running aground on a sandbank off the Wexford coast. The crew were rescued by Coast Guard helicopter to the naval vessel, the LE WB Yeats – essentially having inadvertently handed themselves in for arrest. When the mothership became aware of the distress call, a change of plan was ordered. Voice messages from an individual in Dubai, identified as 'Captain Noah' and who gardai believe remains in the Middle East, show that the crew on the MV Matthew were instructed to load all cocaine into a lifeboat for a rendezvous with a different vessel – which would not occur due to the interception by Irish authorities. The newly released material shows the MV Matthew repeatedly ignore instructions from Revenue and the Naval Service's LE WB Yeats. Text messages and voice notes show panicked communications within the criminal network, including the incorrect belief that the ship would not be boarded if it headed further into international waters. While trying to evade the naval service, the LE WB Yeats entered a 'hot pursuit' and – acting as a warship – fired warning shots in the vicinity of the MV Matthew. The captain of the MV Matthew communicated that it was a commercial vessel and was not in jurisdiction covered by the Irish navy: 'Irish warship, please do not fire at us.' He added: 'Can you advise if you are in hot pursuit of us?' Criminals onboard started deleting messages and attempted to burn the cocaine onboard as Captain Noah told them they would not be boarded. He sent a voice message: 'My stress level is near to heart attack, try to be calm.' However, the Army Ranger Wing would shortly board the vessel by descending on ropes from a helicopter while the ship was moving erratically – ending the chase, leading to the successful arrests and seizure of the cocaine. Speaking to reporters about the operation on Saturday, Assistant Commissioner for Organised and Serious Crime Angela Willis said the investigation showed the Irish State's commitment to tackle organised crime. 'Transnational organised crime groups know no borders, they prey on people's vulnerability for their own financial gain. 'People are dispensable and expendable when they are no longer of use to the criminal organisation 'Life is cheap and protecting their core criminal interest – which is money – is their key priority.' Ms Willis said all those who use drugs recreationally are funding the criminal organisations and are directly linked to the suffering inflicted on communities by the gangs. The senior garda said the sentencing of the eight men came from the 'first phase' of the operation, adding that investigators are now examining pathways to other aspects of the probe – including ascertaining the origin of the funding and financing of the intercepted shipment. She said it was the belief of investigators that several 'trans-global organisations' are involved in these types of shipments. Asked if the Kinahan organised crime group was part of the MV Matthew operation, she said it was 'reasonable to assume' that it would be engaged in that type of activity. Ms Willis said the next stage of the investigation had commenced, examining 'peripheral people' in Ireland and abroad. She said the next phase would include 'asset recovery' of people involved in the drugs trade. Captain Darragh Kirwan, head of Naval Service operations, said the ongoing success of the JTF and support of international partners contributes greatly to the security of the sea and society onshore. David Caunter, Director of Organised and Emerging Crime at INTERPOL said the investigation shows the power of international co-operation among police agencies. 'This is what criminal organisations fear: Global law enforcement working together to protect our citizens and our communities'. He said law enforcement agencies must adapt to criminal groups seeking to expand their operations. Mr Caunter added: 'This investigation delivers a clear message to organised crime: 'Nowhere is safe, we will not stop, we will find you and bring you to justice.' He said organised crime groups are seeking to develop new partnerships, adding that local traffickers may not understand the larger picture of the network they operate in – including links to South America and the Middle East as well as Balkan organised crime and Lebanese groups. He also said west Africa is becoming a more important transit route in the global cocaine trade. Meanwhile, Revenue has said it is working to dispose of the MV Matthew as the cost of storing the vessel soars past nine million euro. A preferred bidder has been identified but Revenue Commissioner Ruth Kennedy said many regulations have to be adhered to before a sale can proceed. Ms Kennedy said the vessel has been kept in running order but would not provide a value on the ship.
North Wales Chronicle
05-07-2025
- North Wales Chronicle
Dramatic footage of Ireland's largest drugs seizure released
It follows the sentencing of eight men on Friday following the seizure of 2.2 tonnes of cocaine with a value of 157 million euro (£132 million) in September 2023. The drugs were seized after the Irish Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel from helicopters in an interception conducted while the crew attempted to steer the ship to high seas. Eight men admitted their roles in trying to smuggle cocaine as part of a massive drug trafficking operation. A range of material relating to the investigation has now been made public, including audio recordings between the captain of the container ship and the Irish Naval Service which was in 'hot pursuit' of the criminals. That pursuit included the firing of warning shots by the Naval Service before the Army Ranger Wing boarded the vessel. The aerial footage and audio recordings detail a dramatic operation carried out at sea in gale force winds and involving Ireland's joint task force on drugs interdiction, which includes the Irish police service An Garda Siochana, Revenue, and the Defence Forces. The operation also involved the Coast Guard and international partners including Interpol and the Maritime Analysis And Operations Centre (Narcotics). The newly published material shows how the Panama-flagged MV Matthew entered Irish territorial waters on September 23 2023 – having set off from Curacao, an island off the coast of Venezuela. Unbeknown to the crew, suspicions about its activities had been relayed to An Garda Siochana and the drugs and organised crime bureau was monitoring the ship. The materials also show how the FV Castlemore fishing trawler, which had been purchased by two men with funding from an organised crime group, was also tracked during the operation. The two men on the FV Castlemore were communicating with criminal cells in Dubai and beyond, who in turn were in touch with the MV Matthew 'mothership'. The trawler engaged in a number of failed attempts to receive clandestine transfers of the cocaine from the MV Matthew. During what would be its final attempt, the Irish Coast Guard engaged with the trawler to warn it of dangerous conditions and inquire about its lack of movement. The FV Castlemore later put out a distress call to the Coast Guard after running aground on a sandbank off the Wexford coast. The crew were rescued by Coast Guard helicopter to the naval vessel, the LE WB Yeats – essentially having inadvertently handed themselves in for arrest. When the mothership became aware of the distress call, a change of plan was ordered. Voice messages from an individual in Dubai, identified as 'Captain Noah' and who gardai believe remains in the Middle East, show that the crew on the MV Matthew were instructed to load all cocaine into a lifeboat for a rendezvous with a different vessel – which would not occur due to the interception by Irish authorities. The newly released material shows the MV Matthew repeatedly ignore instructions from Revenue and the Naval Service's LE WB Yeats. Text messages and voice notes show panicked communications within the criminal network, including the incorrect belief that the ship would not be boarded if it headed further into international waters. While trying to evade the naval service, the LE WB Yeats entered a 'hot pursuit' and – acting as a warship – fired warning shots in the vicinity of the MV Matthew. The captain of the MV Matthew communicated that it was a commercial vessel and was not in jurisdiction covered by the Irish navy: 'Irish warship, please do not fire at us.' He added: 'Can you advise if you are in hot pursuit of us?' Criminals onboard started deleting messages and attempted to burn the cocaine onboard as Captain Noah told them they would not be boarded. He sent a voice message: 'My stress level is near to heart attack, try to be calm.' However, the Army Ranger Wing would shortly board the vessel by descending on ropes from a helicopter while the ship was moving erratically – ending the chase, leading to the successful arrests and seizure of the cocaine. Speaking to reporters about the operation on Saturday, Assistant Commissioner for Organised and Serious Crime Angela Willis said the investigation showed the Irish State's commitment to tackle organised crime. 'Transnational organised crime groups know no borders, they prey on people's vulnerability for their own financial gain. 'People are dispensable and expendable when they are no longer of use to the criminal organisation 'Life is cheap and protecting their core criminal interest – which is money – is their key priority.' Ms Willis said all those who use drugs recreationally are funding the criminal organisations and are directly linked to the suffering inflicted on communities by the gangs. The senior garda said the sentencing of the eight men came from the 'first phase' of the operation, adding that investigators are now examining pathways to other aspects of the probe – including ascertaining the origin of the funding and financing of the intercepted shipment. She said it was the belief of investigators that several 'trans-global organisations' are involved in these types of shipments. Asked if the Kinahan organised crime group was part of the MV Matthew operation, she said it was 'reasonable to assume' that it would be engaged in that type of activity. Ms Willis said the next stage of the investigation had commenced, examining 'peripheral people' in Ireland and abroad. She said the next phase would include 'asset recovery' of people involved in the drugs trade. Captain Darragh Kirwan, head of Naval Service operations, said the ongoing success of the JTF and support of international partners contributes greatly to the security of the sea and society onshore. David Caunter, Director of Organised and Emerging Crime at INTERPOL said the investigation shows the power of international co-operation among police agencies. 'This is what criminal organisations fear: Global law enforcement working together to protect our citizens and our communities'. He said law enforcement agencies must adapt to criminal groups seeking to expand their operations. Mr Caunter added: 'This investigation delivers a clear message to organised crime: 'Nowhere is safe, we will not stop, we will find you and bring you to justice.' He said organised crime groups are seeking to develop new partnerships, adding that local traffickers may not understand the larger picture of the network they operate in – including links to South America and the Middle East as well as Balkan organised crime and Lebanese groups. He also said west Africa is becoming a more important transit route in the global cocaine trade. Meanwhile, Revenue has said it is working to dispose of the MV Matthew as the cost of storing the vessel soars past nine million euro. A preferred bidder has been identified but Revenue Commissioner Ruth Kennedy said many regulations have to be adhered to before a sale can proceed. Ms Kennedy said the vessel has been kept in running order but would not provide a value on the ship.
