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Departure from Cork after technical issues
After the taxpayer has been footing the €120k-per-day bill for the 'Matthew', leading to costs of more than €14 million, since the ship was seized and berthed in the Port of Cork in September 2023, the bulk carrier was finally moved away on the afternoon of July 17, after getting the approval to be taken to sea by the Panama flag state. Works had been ongoing over recent weeks to prepare the freighter for its departure. The departure was initially planned already for July 16 at 6 p.m., but technical issues on the ship meant a 24-hour delay for the operation. The vessel required four tugs to take it out to sea in a complex towage operation. Atlantic Marine & Towage’s Ocean 'Challenger', Doyle Shipping Group’s (DSG) 'DGS Alex' and the 'DGS Titan'. with the bow handled ahead by the 'Foteini' (IMO: 9593232) , also involved in the complex towing procedure that began to head downriver.Other sailors in the area were urged by the Cork Port Authority to be cautious during the operation. The 'Foteini'was showing that it was destined to Varna with an ETA as of August 9. Media reports in Ireland were now saying the 'Mathew' would be overhauled and returned to service for its unidentified new owners. Reports with photos and video: https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2026/0717/1583938-mvmatthew-departure/ https://www.thejournal.ie/mv-matthew-leaves-cork-harbour-for-dutch-scrapyard-7106109-Jul2026/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPe9DEsw3_I https://afloat.ie/port-news/cork-harbour-news/item/72229-ireland-s-largest-tug-assists-cork-s-cocaine-busted-bulker-mv-matthew
Maintenance cost has now surpassed €9.3 million,
Over the last two years the 'Matthew' has been moved across the port of Cork on a number of occasions. The job of maintaining and relocating the vessel has led to noise complaints from residents in the area. Whenever the ship is moved, tugs are used to guide it across the river at a cost of around €30,000 per move. The cost to the state of keeping the ship maintained has now surpassed €9.3 million, with engines running all day to keep equipment in working condition so that it can eventually be sold. The state was obliged to hold the ship for the duration of criminal proceedings against the crew, though it was released by the courts at the end of 2024. Now a bidder for the ship has been identified by the Revenue Office, but paperwork in Ireland as well as the register state Panama would still take some time.
Prison sentences from 13.5 to 20 years
Eight crew members from the 'Matthew' have received prison sentences ranging from 13.5 to 20 years for their roles in Ireland’s largest cocaine seizure – a 2.2-tonne haul valued at €157 million. The sentences mark the conclusion of a case that began with a military operation in Sep 2023, whicg dismantled a sophisticated smuggling attempt orchestrated by a transnational crime group based in Dubai. The bulk carrier, which had traveled from South America via Willemstad, Curaçao, was intercepted off Ireland’s coast after being tracked for several days. When the vessel ignored multiple warnings and attempted to evade authorities, the Irish Navy patrol vessel 'LÉ William Butler Yeats' fired warning shots before military forces boarded the ship via helicopter. A second vessel, the 'Castlemore', had been purchased to collect the cocaine from the mother ship for smuggling into Europe, but it ran aground off the Wexford coast. The heaviest sentence of 20 years was given to Dutch national Cumali Ozgen, described as “the cartel’s man on the ship” who stood to receive a substantial bonus for the operation’s completion. The court deemed the case within exceptional and egregious circumstances due to its scale and sophistication. The organization used Starlink Wi-Fi, encryption software, and spoofing techniques to disguise the vessel’s route and location at sea. The 'Matthew' was escorted to a naval base at Marino Point in Cork Harbour after the raid. Equassis data revealed the vessel was owned by a one-ship company based in the Marshall Islands and had changed hands just weeks before the operation.
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