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Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Irish Examiner
EU drug report warns of rising cocaine use and synthetic drug threats across Europe
Record quantities of cocaine have been seized in Europe for the seventh year in a row, the EU's drug agency has said. The EUDA said while cocaine cartels typically use commercial containers to ship multi-tonne consignments, they also employ other methods, such as their own cargo ships — and cited the example of the MV Matthew, caught off the Cork coast in September 2023. That vessel was boarded dramatically by elite Army Rangers and 2.25 tonnes of cocaine was seized, in an operation also involving gardaí, customs, the naval service, and the air corps. Gerry Harrahill of Revenue and Customs, Assistant Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly, and Irish Naval Service Commander Tony Geraghty at the Joint Task Force media briefing on September 27, 2023, after the Panamanian-registered MV Matthew was seized with €157m worth of cocaine on board. Picture: Brian Lawless/PA The EU agency said cocaine was the second most common problem drug in the EU for people seeking treatment for the first time, accounting for 26% of all new entrants. However, Irish figures show that the numbers seeking first-time treatment for cocaine was much greater, accounting for 46% of new entrants into treatment in 2023. The EUDA said that, as there was a long time gap between first use and seeking treatment, there could be a 'surge' in treatment demand for cocaine in the coming years. In its European Union Drug Report 2025, the agency also said: Europe is facing an emerging threat from synthetic drugs — including artificial substances that mimic cannabis, heroin and stimulants; High-potency cannabis extracts and edibles such as jellies were of 'particular concern' given hospital admissions and because they were attractive to children; Semi-synthetic cannabinoids such as HHC were found in vapes and gummies and widely available online and in stores in Ireland; Germany, Luxembourg, Malta and Netherlands were allowing for home growing of cannabis, non-profit growing clubs, and cannabis use in private — but the EUDA urged the policies be evaluated to grasp their impact on health and security; The increasing strength of ecstasy posed 'unpredictable health risks' to consumers, with the average MDMA content almost doubling since 2011. This latter trend was highlighted in Ireland last week, when the HSE issued an alert saying that one in four ecstasy tablets tested in 2024 had an average strength about 200mg, twice the typical adult dose. The EUDA report said 419 tonnes of cocaine was seized in 2023, compared to 323 tonnes in 2022 — up 30%. Some 303 tonnes were seized in 2021 and 211 tonnes in 2020, meaning the total almost doubled in three years. European Commissioner for internal affairs Magnus Brunner said: 'The illicit drug trade poses a severe threat to the health and security of our citizens. 'It fosters an environment of intimidation and corruption, undermining the fabric of our communities.'
RTÉ News
03-06-2025
- Business
- RTÉ News
MV Matthew crew hired by crime group in Dubai, court told
Six men who crewed a Panamanian cargo ship with the largest cocaine seizure in Irish history were hired in Dubai by a transnational organised crime group before flying to South America for the international drug trafficking operation. In total, eight men have admitted their roles in trying to smuggle 2.2 tonnes of cocaine worth over €157m before it was seized following a joint garda, customs and Defence Forces operation in September 2023. The six arrested on board the MV Mathew ignored instructions from the LE William Butler Yeats naval vessel five times and tried to burn the drugs on board before a team of Army Rangers abseiled aboard in treacherous conditions and secured the ship. Two other men bought a boat in Castletownbere to collect the drugs from the mothership, but it ran aground off the coast of Wexford and they had to be rescued by the coastguard. Ukrainians Mykhailo Gavryk and Vitaliy Vlasoi, who are both 32, 51-year-old Soheil Jelveh and 39-year-old Saeid Hassani, 31-year-old Harold Estoesta and 49-year-old Cumali Ozgen, who is from the Netherlands, all pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine for sale or supply on board the MV Mathew between 24 and 26 September 2023. Vitaliy Lapa, 62, who is also from Ukraine with an address at Rudenko, Repina Str in Berdyansk and 31-year-old Jamie Harbron of South Avenue, Billingham in the UK, pleaded guilty to attempting to possess cocaine for sale or supply between 21 and 25 September 2023. The drugs gang communicated on WhatsApp groups and were directed by a transnational organised crime group based in Dubai, which Detective Superintendent Keith Halley told the court today had "immense capabilities, unlimited resources and a global reach". "It operated a cell structure so if one cell was compromised, the damage to the organisation was limited," he said. The court heard the MV Mathew was given clear instructions to evade law enforcement right up to the time the helicopter with the Army Rangers arrived. The messages included reassurances such as "just relax and this will all be over soon", "I spoke with Happy, don't worry everything seems to be nice" and "once you're out and away mate". They were also told erroneously that the Irish authorities could not board the vessel in international waters and tried to evade capture by heading for Sierra Leone. Dutch national Cumali Ozgen, who was known as "Jimmy", was the cartel's man on the ship, "the eyes and ears of the criminal organisation on board". He was in phone contact with someone in Dubai every three days and accommodated in the prestigious "pilot's cabin" in spite of the fact that he had no sea experience. He had no other function on board but to correspond with someone outside and was in line for a €50,000 bonus upon completion of the operation. There were others on board who were part of the crew but had no part of the drugs smuggling operation. Ozgen helped load the drugs onto the ship, move them while on board and provided the paint thinner to burn them. Captain of the ship Soheil Jelveh, who was a qualified maritime engineer, admitted that he was aware the consignment on the ship was not "spare parts" but said he took instructions and did what he was told. However, he said he was in fear and that they could kill him or his family in Dubai at any time. He also said the "Jimmy, the Dutch guy" had been put on board to kill him so he stayed in his room. He became ill and was winched off the ship by the Irish coastguard before it was boarded and seized and was found with two suitcases, four phones including a satellite and encrypted phone and $57,000 in cash. Gardaí accepted that he had contrived the illness to get off the ship and took the money as payment for his work. He has no previous convictions. Mykhailo Gavryk was the second officer on board and had been a seaman all his life. He admitted he moved drugs on board the ship and although he gave his phone and his PIN to gardaí, the contents had largely been deleted. He said he followed instructions from others and gardaí accepted he knew the least about the drugs smuggling operation. The sentencing hearing continues tomorrow.
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Wild moment Army Rangers go rogue and open fire at crowded Florida beach in mock sea battle gone wrong
A group of at least 18 Army Rangers apparently went rogue when they opened fire at a crowded Florida beach last Friday and sent boaters and sunbathers ducking for cover. The soldiers were caught on video wearing their military fatigues and Army Ranger t-shirts in two row boats off of Crab Island when they fired blanks into the air next to people wading through the shallow water and enjoying the warm weather. In one video shared to social media, a woman could be heard off camera shouting 'Is that real?' as the shots went off. The sound of guns discharging prompted clients on Michael Ingram's charter boat to try to take cover, he told Task & Purpose. After the second burst, Ingram said he heard people screaming in the distance - and his heart sank as he thought somebody had been shot. 'This is unacceptable because there are so many real mass shootings going on in America each year,' the boat captain argued. 'You can't be joking about it.' Meanwhile, the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office reported it received at least two 911 calls about the shots fired. The shocking incident apparently came after the Army Rangers with the 6th Ranger Training Battalion participated in a pirate festival just five miles away - but city officials and festival organizers have denied the wild scene was part of the festivities. Army Rangers take part in the annual Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival at the nearby Fort Walton Beach each year. As part of the festivities, the soldiers engage in a mock battle in which they fire blanks while riding in small boats to capture the legendary pirate. Festival officials, though, note that the Army Rangers in the videos were not participating in a sanctioned event at the time - and were located outside of the festival's perimeter. City of Fort Walton Beach officials also noted that it had sent out noise alerts earlier in the day detailing the exact time frame and location of the battle, as well as the noises that could be expected. The shots heard Friday afternoon were not on the schedule, city officials said on social media. They explained that the mock sea battle 'was the ONLY approved festival activity that involved the Army Rangers firing their weapons.' 'What happened at Crab Island was NOT part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival, NOR was it approved by either the City of Fort Walton Beach or the Billy Bowlegs organization.' 'We do not know what occurred at Crab Island on Friday... except to say that it was not in any way part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival,' city spokesman Devon Ravine added, noting that the Fort Walton Beach Landing is five miles from Crab Island. A soldier who spoke on the condition of anonymity to Task & Purpose also seemed surprised by his colleagues' actions. He said that if the Rangers were testing their weapons prior to the Pirate Festival, they showed poor judgment by doing it so close to civilians. The soldier also expressed his doubt that a senior leader would have given permission to fire weapons in public outside of the designated festival area. Jennifer S. Gunn, a spokeswoman for the Army Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, Georgia, has since confirmed the US Army is investigating the incident. 'We take this situation seriously and are investigating,' she said, adding that the Army 'will ensure accountability based on the outcome of the investigation.' She has since announced that the 18 soldiers involved in the fake shooting have been temporarily suspended as instructors, pending the outcome of the investigation. As part of the suspension, Gunn said, the soldiers cannot train students going through the final stage of the US Army Ranger Course at Camp Rudder, which is located on Elgin Air Force Base in Florida.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Yahoo
Army investigating whether Rangers fired weapons at public beach before ‘pirate sea battle'
The Army has launched an investigation into whether a group of Army Rangers fired automatic weapons at a popular public beach crowded with boaters and tourists on Friday in Destin, Florida. Jennifer S. Gunn, a spokeswoman for the Army Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, Georgia told Task & Purpose that officials are looking into the incident in which men wearing military uniforms and Ranger t-shirts fired blank rounds at Crab Island in Destin, triggering several calls to police and a flurry of social media posts. 'The Army is aware of the incident that occurred at Crab Island near Fort Walton Beach, Florida, Friday, May 16,' Gunn told Task & Purpose. 'We take this situation seriously and are investigating. The Army will ensure accountability based on the outcome of the investigation. No further information is available at this time.' Officials could not confirm if a group seen firing weapons at Crab Island were Army Rangers, but local officials confirmed to Task & Purpose that a group of Army Rangers participated that afternoon in a sanctioned public event five miles away that did involve firing weapons with blank rounds. Soldiers with the Army's 6th Ranger Battalion assigned to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, took part in a mock 'sea battle' with a pirate ship on Friday evening as part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival, said Devon Ravine, a spokesman for the city of Fort Walton Beach. Riding in small boats, the Rangers fired blanks while maneuvering their boats to 'capture' Billy Bowlegs. The 6th Ranger Training Battalion runs the swamp phase of Ranger School at Eglin, but is not within the 75th Ranger Regiment. The event took place at Fort Walton Beach Landing, another popular boating destination a short boat ride from Destin across Choctawhatchee Bay. 'This was the only approved festival activity that involved the Army Rangers firing their weapons,' Ravine said. The pirate festival, he said, was about five miles from Crab Island. 'We do not know what occurred at Crab Island on Friday, and cannot comment, except to say that it was not in any way a part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival.' The pirate battle in Fort Walton Beach is an annual event that was announced earlier in the week, with public alerts that simulated gunfire might be heard during the event. Rangers from 6th Ranger Training Battalion on Eglin Air Force Base have participated in the event in past years, and Rangers were there again on Friday. One witness at Crab Island told Task & Purpose that the group in uniforms began firing without issuing any sort of warning ahead of time. Michael Ingram, a charter boat captain, said that when the firing began, his clients and many other boaters took cover. After the second burst, Ingram heard people screaming in the distance. He said his heart sank because he worried someone had been shot. 'This is unacceptable because there are so many real mass shootings going on in America each year,' Ingram said. 'You can't be joking about it.' Ingram said that to the best of his knowledge, no one at Crab Island that afternoon knew ahead of time that the service members would be there. He added that when the soldiers later mingled with civilians, boaters could see their Ranger tabs. Though officials would not confirm that the group seen firing weapons at Crab Island was the Ranger team from the pirate battle, numerous pictures and videos on social media of the Destin event appear to match the group. In one of the videos, a woman who is off camera can be heard shouting after the first burst, 'Is that real?' A caption for the video says the people firing the weapons are part of a military unit that had stopped while on their way to an event at Fort Walton Beach. Videos posted from Crab Island on social media show men in military uniforms with Ranger tabs and 'Follow me!'-shoulder patches of the Army's infantry school, which oversees Ranger training units, matching pictures of the soldiers at the Fort Walton Beach event. The weapons and personal kit the men are carrying also appear to match those seen at Fort Walton Beach, as do the make and model of their boats. The Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office received at least two 911 calls about Friday's incident, sheriff's office spokeswoman Michele Nicholson told Task & Purpose on Monday. 'We had the first 911 call come in on May 16th at 3:22 p.m. from the Crab Island area,' Nicholson said. 'The dispatch notes indicate a second 911 call came in during that same time frame. It also references three additional calls, but those may have been received over the primary line, not 911.' Firing weapons in public locations, even with blank rounds, without considerable preparation and warning, is not a normal procedure for soldiers. A soldier who spoke to Task & Purpose on condition of anonymity said that if the Rangers were testing their weapons prior to the pirate festival, they showed poor judgment by doing it so close to civilians. The soldier doubted that a senior leader would have given permission to fire weapons in public outside of the designated festival area where the event was actually taking place. The city of Fort Walton Beach issued a statement on Saturday advising anyone who wants to file a complaint over the Crab Island incident to contact the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office or the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The latest on Task & Purpose Army to eliminate 2 Security Force Assistance Brigades, reassign experienced soldiers Why the Army's new XM7 rifle reignited a debate over volume of fire Air Force delay on separation and retirement orders isn't 'stop loss,' defense official says F-35's close call over Yemen raises questions about how it's used An Army unit's 'extreme use of profanity' was so bad, they made a rule about it
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Armored vehicles and nearly 7,000 troops: A look at plans for military parade on Trump's birthday
WASHINGTON - The Army's plans for a massive parade on June 14 – its 250th anniversary and President Donald Trump's 79th birthday – will roll armored vehicles and nearly 7,000 troops past a reviewing stand for Trump on Constitution Avenue near the White House, according to documents. Parade units will mark critical mileposts in the Army's history from soldiers in Revolutionary War attire to Army Rangers and Stryker armored vehicles to commemorate the Global War on Terror. 'Begins with the Secretary of the Army and Chief of Staff of the Army reporting to the President of the United States (POTUS) followed by our Nation's flag carried by the Honor Guard's Color Guard and the Army Flag,' the planning document states. During his first term, Trump's demand for a militarized July 4 celebration on the National Mall drew criticism that he had politicized Independence Day. Instead of tanks rolling down Washington's wide avenues, and chewing up pavement, Pentagon officials staged a toned-down event that featured flyovers and a display of armored Bradley Fighting Vehicles. There appears to be no apprehension this time from the Army about combining its anniversary with Trump's birthday. The parade, according to a U.S. official, was an idea pushed by the White House. The official spoke on condition of anonymity. This time the Army is all in on the concept, according to the documents. More: They love a parade: President Trump and US Army to celebrate their June 14 birthdays The parade's finale includes the Army's Golden Knights parachute team landing and presenting a 'flag to the POTUS on behalf of the Army,' one planning slide shows. Trump will then preside over a ceremony enlisting and re-enlisting soldiers. Plans call for 6,686 soldiers, 50 aircraft, seven bands and 152 vehicles, including 92 categorized as 'heavy.' Those include M-1 Abrams tanks and vintage World War II Sherman tanks. The parade is scheduled to last nearly four hours and be capped off with a fireworks display. Contributing: Sudiksha Kochi This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Army plans massive four-hour parade on Trump's birthday
