MV Matthew, a Panamanian-flagged, nominally Marshallese-owned bulk carrier, was interdicted and stormed by soldiers of the Irish Army Ranger Wing on 26 September 2023 after refusing to stop for the Irish Naval Service's LÉ William Butler Yeats. Matthew, known as MV Honmon until shortly before the incident, had been monitored for weeks based on information from the United States Drug Enforcement Agency as relayed through the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre—Narcotics, and had apparently attempted to rendezvous with the Irish trawler Castlemore before Castlemore became trapped in a sandbank and Matthew experienced engine trouble. After Matthew moved erratically toward William Butler Yeats, the latter fired warning shots (the first fired in anger by the Irish Navy since 1984) and Rangers took Matthew by force from a helicopter. The raid resulted in the seizure of 2,253 kilograms (4,967 lb) of South American cocaine, worth approximately €157 million, the largest drugs seizure in Irish history. At least nine arrests ensued, with one person subsequently released.

Background

MV Honmon, a 190-metre-long (620 ft) bulk carrier built in 2001,[1] with a clean slate from port states in the preceding 20 years,[2] was bought by new owners in the summer of 2023.[3] After a trip through the South China Sea,[3] its owners changed its name to Matthew on 1 August.[2] On 10 August, ownership was transferred from Seawin Marine to Matthew Maritime of the Marshall Islands,[2] which intelligence analysts began to suspect was a shell company.[4] United States, French, and Dutch agencies, among others, monitored the ship's activities in the Caribbean.[4] On 18[2] or 19 August,[1] it departed Curaçao with a stated destination of Gdańsk, Poland, apparently picking up cargo in Georgetown, Guyana, along the way.[1] In this time, the United States Drug Enforcement Agency notified the Garda Síochána's National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau of the impending cocaine shipment through the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre—Narcotics.[4]

Meanwhile, on 22 September, two men, both apparently not from Ireland[4] and not familiar with boats,[5] bought Castlemore, a fishing trawler, for perhaps €200,000 cash.[5][3] According to TheJournal.ie, "the men got on board telling anyone that would listen to them that they were on their way to a fishing village in Devon on the south west coast of Britain".[4]

Interdiction

William Butler Yeats in 2016

Matthew, after changing its destination to Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kindgom, entered the Republic of Ireland's territorial waters on 23 September, moving at a fairly high speed. A number of issues ensued: On 24 September, the ship changed course for Cork, Ireland, reporting engine troubles.[1] That night, Castlemore ran aground on a sandbank in the dark. Its two crew members were rescued by an Irish Coast Guard (IRCG) helicopter in the early morning of 25 September, and were taken to the Irish Naval Service's LÉ William Butler Yeats, where they were arrested by Garda detectives.[4] The same day, with Matthew off the coast of Waterford, its captain was medically evacuated by the IRCG,[1] possibly as a result of a row among the crew.[4]

Bereft of most of its cargo, Matthew was riding high in the water and was thus unstable. William Butler Yeats abandoned plans of a naval boarding and instead called for the assistance of the Army Ranger Wing, who were on standby. Pending the Rangers' arrival, William Butler Yeats drew closer to Matthew and attempted to stop it.[4] After Matthew moved erratically, William Butler Yeats fired a single volley of machine gun fire across Matthew's bow,[4][6] the first shots fired in anger by the Irish Navy since 1984.[lower-alpha 1]

Soon thereafter, Rangers fast-roped onto Matthew from an Irish Air Corps helicopter.[4] Matthew crew members allegedly burned bales of cocaine as the Rangers boarded.[6] The Rangers took control of the ship, overcoming resistance near the ship's bridge. A pilot then sailed it into Cork Harbour, to a crowd of awaiting onlookers.[4]

Investigation

Investigators found 2,253 kilograms (4,967 lb) of South American cocaine aboard Matthew, worth approximately €157 million, amounting to the largest drugs seizure in Irish history.[8]

During and after the interdiction, Gardaí arrested nine people as of 30 September, of whom one was subsequently released,[9] and interviewed all 25 crew members.[10]

Notes

  1. ↑ According to TheJournal.ie, the preceding instance of the Irish Navy firing in anger was in 1984, when LÉ Aisling "fired warning shots at another vessel that refused to halt.[4] TheJournal.ie does not specify the engagement in question. On 20 October 1984, Aisling fired upon and sank the Spanish trawler Sonia;[7] it is unclear if this is the incident TheJournal.ie refers to.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Doherty, Tomas (29 September 2023). "From the Caribbean to Cork: The journey of cocaine ship MV Matthew to Ireland". BreakingNews.ie. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Dixon, Gary (27 September 2023). "Shots fired as bulker fails to stop during drugs raid off Ireland". TradeWinds. Archived from the original on 31 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 Mooney, John (1 October 2023). "Inside story of how Irish forces tracked €157m cocaine ship". The Times. Archived from the original on 1 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 O'Connor, Niall (27 September 2023). "High seas: Inside the multi-agency maritime pursuit of the MV Matthew". TheJournal.ie. Archived from the original on 2 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  5. 1 2 Michael, Neil (27 September 2023). "Men who bought West Cork trawler linked to cocaine haul 'hadn't a clue' about boats". Irish Examiner. ProQuest 2869334035. Archived from the original on 2 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  6. 1 2 O'Keeffe, Cormac; Murphy, Ann; Dunphy, Liz (26 September 2023). "Smugglers burned cocaine as Army Rangers stormed ship". Irish Examiner. Archived from the original on 30 September 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  7. ↑ "The Irish sink a Spanish trawler". The Sydney Morning Herald. 22 October 1984. Archived from the original on 20 October 2023. Retrieved 22 March 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  8. ↑ Croffey, Amy (27 September 2023). "Ireland seizes largest ever drugs haul worth over $165M". CNN. Archived from the original on 6 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  9. ↑ MacRedmond, David (30 September 2023). "Eighth man arrested in connection with MV Matthew cargo ship drug seizure as another released". TheJournal.ie. Archived from the original on 5 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  10. ↑ Reynolds, Paul (27 September 2023). "Three more men arrested over Cork drugs seizure". RTÉ. Archived from the original on 2 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
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