Four men confirm guilty pleas in €31m West Cork drug-smuggling case

They were further remanded in custody for sentencing in May

(Left to right) Christopher Hibbett, Mark Doherty, Ben Sandford, and Levent Gulay each confirmed their guilty pleas on Tuesday to drug-dealing and importation offences.

One of the country’s biggest ever drug hauls — the seizure of €31 million worth of cocaine at Courtmacsherry last summer — saw four men confirming their guilty pleas on Tuesday to drug-dealing and importation offences.

The four men from Scotland, England and Germany appeared together in the dock at Courtroom 4 in Cork Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday where each of them in turn confirmed their pleas of guilty to serious drugs charges in respect of the 440 kilos of cocaine.