Gardaí believe gang may have attempted to land €1bn of cocaine in West Cork

The men in custody, aged from mid 20s to mid 50s, include six Spanish nationals, two Serbian nationals, and two Dutch man, with one believed to have Iran heritage or links to the country.

At least one is known to international police and security forces for involvement in the international drugs trade.

One of the men in custody is also said to have extensive seafaring experience. Several wet suits and diving gear have been recovered by gardaí.

Given the investment required for the scale of this land-based logistics operation, senior Garda sources believe the gang would have been attempting to land between 1.5 to two tonnes of 90% pure cocaine to make it viable.

Once a consignment that size is cut down five or six times, it could be worth up to €1bn on the streets.

Gardaí have already traced the movements of several gang members and have established some flew into the country in recent days, identifying a number of hotels and AirBnBs in the West Cork region where they stayed.

Gardaí have also seized several mobile phones and electronic devices, including GPS devices, which are now being forensically examined to see if data can shed any light on their operation.

The Irish Naval Service is analysing shipping tracking data of certain vessels — which were off the South West coast in recent days — to establish any suspicious movements, and identity a potential mother-ship which could have been carrying a large consignment of drugs.

The Lisbon-based Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre, which plays a key intelligence role in the identification of transatlantic drugs shipments, is also assisting with the investigation.

It has proved crucial in several major drug seizures since the start of the year, including the seizure of seven tonnes of cocaine in a series of bold, at-sea interceptions of three separate vessels by the French navy in the space of just six days in late February.

Garda sources believe these seizures, along with other recent major drugs seizures here, including last September’s dramatic Army Ranger Wing interdiction on the MV Matthew off Cork — which led to a €157m cocaine haul, the largest in the history of the state — has led to a significant pinch on Europe’s illegal cocaine supply chain operations.

They believe this pinch may have forced the international organised crime gang financing this shipment to take more risks with the timing of transatlantic drug runs, and with the drug landing operation itself, which in this case included the parking of a large articulated truck on a small pier at Tragumna beach, about 9km south of Skibbereen — a sight which was bound to arose local suspicions — and an attempted at-sea rendezvous in severe weather.

While the 10 men are being questioned, the hunt is on for the suspected mothership. No drugs have been recovered yet.

Gardaí are also trying to establish if they interrupted the gang on a recce or a test-run, or if they pounced moments after an aborted smuggling operation.

A source said bad weather and heavy seas could have forced the gang to abandon their efforts, and the drugs could still be out there.

Some drugs gangs have dropped waterproof bales at sea from the mothership, sometimes up to 20km off-shore, allowing them to sink with a GPS tracker and timed or electronically triggered floatation devices attached.

Land-based gang members zero in on the GPS signal, activate or wait for the flotation devices to fire, and then collect the drugs when they float to the surface.

Detectives had been tracking the gang’s activities for some time in advance of Thursday’s arrests, but stepped up their operation following reports of suspicious activity earlier this week around Tragumna beach.

They pounced on the gang at 7.30am on Thursday, arresting four men — one in an articulated truck, and three in a jeep — and seizing the truck, a rigid inflatable boat stowed in the truck’s trailer, and the jeep.

The inflatable boat was fitted with three high powered engines, each up to 250hp — two to power the craft and one for backup. It had a specific hull type to allow it cope with heavy seas and weather up to 20km offshore.

It was also found to be carrying a large quantity of fuel, giving it an additional 15 hours of endurance.

Around the same time, gardaí intercepted a foreign-registered campervan as it drove through Leap village about 16km to the North East, arresting six men there.

All 10 were arrested on suspicion of being members of an organised crime group and are detained at Garda stations across Cork city and country, under the provisions of organised crime legislation, where they can be held up to seven days before being charged or released.