Half-tonne cocaine haul worth €31m seized in major joint operation off West Cork coast

Authorities foil British-German drug gang’s €30m smuggling bid after sophisticated surveillance and sea pursuit

A major search operation for a suspect boat, which was used to land the drugs at Broad Strand near Courtmacsherry, is ongoing. Picture: Martin Walsh.

Four men have been arrested and about half a tonne of cocaine — potentially worth up to €31m — has been seized in West Cork after authorities intercepted a British-German drug trafficking network.

The consignment — the largest since 2.25 tonnes of cocaine were seized on the MV Matthew off the Cork/Waterford coast in September 2023 — was recovered following a sophisticated surveillance operation by Irish security and law enforcement agencies.