Accused was involved in disguising true position of cocaine ship MV Matthew, court told

The MV Matthew was boarded in a dramatic operation by the Army Rangers, a specialist wing of the Irish Defence Forces, in September 2023. File picture: Larry Cummins

An officer of the Panamanian cargo ship that was seized by a joint task force off the Wexford coast for trafficking 2.2 tonnes of cocaine was involved in a group effort to disguise the vessel's true position, the Special Criminal Court has heard.

Filipino Harold Estoesta, aged 31, and Iranian Saeid Hassani, aged 39, have denied having the cocaine for sale or supply on board the Panamanian bulk carrier MV Matthew. The 2.25 tonnes of cocaine, the largest such seizure in Irish history, has an estimated value of more than €157 million. The ship was boarded in a dramatic operation by the Army Rangers, a specialist wing of the Irish Defence Forces, in September 2023.

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

The prosecution case against the two men is that they were directly involved in the physical possession of the drugs by the role they had played as ship’s officers. 

Saeid Hassani has denied having the cocaine for sale or supply on board the Panamanian bulk carrier MV Matthew. File picture: Dan Linehan

Prosecution counsel, Sean Guerin SC, said there would be evidence that the men had given direction to others in the preparation for the physical transfer of the drugs from the MV Matthew onto a fishing boat named The Castlemore.

The State alleges both accused were in a Deck Officers WhatsApp group and the case against them relates to communications about the transportation of the drugs and the concealment of those activities from others.

Ship's route

At the Special Criminal Court on Thursday, the evidence continued of Gary Delaney, a retired naval officer with 40 years’ experience in land and marine surveying. The court previously heard that he inspected the systems used by the MV Matthew to work out the ship’s navigation and route.

He explained that the Automatic Identification System (AIS) broadcasts the position of vessels to neighbouring ships, while the Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS) records the ship’s route.

Counsel for the State, John Berry SC, referenced a phone taken from Mr Hassani that contained messages to the WhatsApp group known as The Deck Officers. Mr Delaney confirmed that these messages showed that Mr Estoesta was aware of efforts by people on board the ship to use the AIS to simulate the vessel’s position.

He said that as the MV Matthew approached Irish waters, there was no actual evidence of a simulated position but an absence of any position. 

The court heard that messages showed that Harold Estoesta was aware of efforts by people on board the ship to use the AIS to simulate the vessel’s position. File picture: Dan Linehan

He said that the AIS did not provide any information, which he attributed to an uncertainty by those on board about which route to take. 

He said that there was later an update on September 23, 2023, to the AIS records showing a change of destination from Gdansk to Belfast.

He said that just after midnight on September 24, the AIS sent a message that the ship was "not under command". The witness explained that this was an official term as part of the collision regulations, indicating it had no engine power and could not be controlled. He said that this meant it could not enter into avoidance with other vessels.

He said that two hours later, the AIS status was changed to indicate the vessel was underway using its engine. The vessel’s destination was then changed from Belfast to Cork.

Mr Delaney previously gave evidence that in August 2023, there was a divergence between where the MV Matthew actually was and what it was broadcasting its position as.

He said that from August 22 to September 7, the vessel reported itself as doing a perfect circle off the coast of Guyana, but the ECDIS showed it was off the coast of Venezuela. Mr Delaney said that in the real world, ships do not do perfect circles without dynamic positioning systems, something that the MV Matthew did not have.

The trial continues next Tuesday, with Ms Justice Melanie Greally presiding over the three-judge court.

Charges

Mr Hassani and Mr Estoesta are charged that on September 24, 2023, on board the vessel MV Matthew within the territorial sea of the State, they had in their possession controlled drugs, namely cocaine, for the purpose of selling or otherwise supplying the drug 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 while the drug was in their possession the market value of the controlled drug amounted to €13,000 or more.

They are also charged with the possession of cocaine for sale or supply to a value of €13,000 or more between September 24 and 26, 2023, both dates inclusive, at locations outside the State, on board the vessel MV Matthew, a ship registered in Panama, a Convention state.

Each man also faces a third charge that on September 24, 2023, within the State, with knowledge of the existence of a criminal organisation, he participated in or contributed to activity intending to, or being reckless as to whether such participation or contribution could, facilitate the commission of a serious offence by that criminal organisation or any of its members.

Both men have pleaded not guilty to the three charges.

Four co-accused — Ukrainians Mykhailo Gavryk, aged 32, and Vitaliy Vlasoi, aged 32, Iranian Soheil Jelveh, aged 51, and Dutch national Cumali Ozgen, aged 49 — last week pleaded guilty to similar offences connected to the seizure.