How the Athlone Air Ambulance was key to huge cocaine seizure

The recent convictions of eight men for their roles in trying to smuggle the largest cocaine seizure in Irish history has shone the spotlight once again on the remarkable involvement of the Athlone-based air ambulance helicopter in the operation.

The Athlone AW139 helicopter was repurposed on short notice into a military helicopter and called into service in the dramatic and daring operation.

It was used to deploy members of the Army Ranger Wing onto the boat concerned, the MV Matthew, via rope, in a high-stakes move which ended in the vessel being taken under control.

The Athlone helicopter had earlier that day been stripped of its medical equipment, and flown from Baldonnel to Waterford, as part of the major inter-agency operation, due to the lack of any other available and suitable Air Corps helicopter.

The drugs were seized following a joint garda, customs and Defence Forces operation in September 2023 after army rangers carried by the Athlone helicopter forcibly boarded the cargo ship at sea.

It was a tense and risky procedure, with the helicopter having to negotiating winds on the deck of 35-40 knots, the proximity of two cranes on board, a four-metre swell causing the vessel to pitch and roll and evasive manoeuvres being undertaken by the vessel.

The operation which concluded on September 26 resulted in the MV Matthew being takenover by Joint Task Force personnel.

The

taskforce consisted of the Revenue Customs Service, An Garda Síochána and the Naval Service as the lead representatives for the Defence Forces. During this operation, all three services of Óglaigh na hÉireann were deployed.

The Naval Service's L.E. William Butler Yeats interdicted the MV Matthew, while the Air Corps' C295 and PC12 provided surveillance and overwatch to enable the Athlone AW139 to deploy members of the Army Ranger Wing by fast rope onto the MV Matthew to secure and take control of the vessel.

In a statement, after the trial, the Defence Forces noted the unique skillsets provided by Óglaigh na hÉireann, supported by Revenue Customs Service and An Garda Síochána in making the largest drugs seizure in the history of the state.

“The operation represents the culmination of the constant planning and preparation conducted by our people, across all the three services of Óglaigh na hÉireann.”

Six men caught on board the MV Matthew with 2.2 tonnes of cocaine and two others who attempted to take the illicit load on board a second vessel in the Irish Sea were jailed recently for a combined 129 years.

Ukrainians Mykhailo Gavryk (32) and Vitaliy Vlasoi (33); Iranians Soheil Jelveh (52) and Saeid Hassani (39); Filipino Harold Estoesta (31); and Dutch national Cumali Ozgen (50) previously pleaded guilty that between September 24 and 26 2023, both dates inclusive, at locations outside the State, on board the vessel "MV Matthew" they possessed cocaine for sale or supply contravention of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations. The drugs were valued at €157 million.

Ukrainian national Vitaliy Lapa (62), with an address at Rudenka, Repina Str in Berdyansk, and Jamie Harbron (31) of South Avenue, Billingham in the UK pleaded guilty that on dates between September 21 and 25, 2023, at a location within the State, he attempted to possess cocaine for the purpose of selling or otherwise supplying to another, in contravention of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2017 to 2023, made under section 5 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 and at the time when the controlled drug was in his possession, the market value was €13,000 or more.

Ms Justice Melanie Greally sentenced Ozgen to 20 years in prison; Estoesta to 18 years; Jelveh to 17.5 years; Vlasoi to 16.5 years; Hassani to 15 years; Gavryk to 14 years; Lapa to 14.5 years and Harbron to 13.5 years.

The court previously heard that while the MV Matthew was sailing under the flag of Panama, it was owned by a Dubai-based company. It departed from Curacao, off the Venezuelan coast and sailed across the Atlantic before arriving in Irish waters.

The court also heard that an organised crime group in Dubai instructed the crew of the MV Matthew as it attempted to evade law enforcement and deliver the drugs to an Irish vessel.

Despite repeated warnings from the Irish Navy, including warning shots fired from the LE William Butler Yeats, the person overseeing the operation told the crew to keep going and head for a safe port in Sierra Leone.

The original plan was that the MV Matthew would deliver the drugs to a second ship, the Castlemore, but rough seas and technical difficulties caused the Irish vessel to miss the connection and later to run aground.